Devil's Snare
by Jolinar773
Summary: Soul Society and Hueco Mundo are in the middle of the Winter War. There is, however, always someone acting on his own personal agenda. And if the someone has power not even Aizen Sousuke's can be compared to... enemy of my enemy becomes my friend.
1. Chapter 1

**Yaay! I'm back alive and kicking, finally getting to publishing the long-shot that's been rotting on my PC for some time now... and memories of Anime Dance Weekend fest still fresh in my head :)**

**Turned out quite interesting actually, the fest did. Since I was walking around in my first ever cosplay (Espada at that) with number 6 tattooed on my leg, I ended up being called Grimmy through the whole thing :) And there was quite a colorful set of other cosplays as well – shinigami and vampires and stuff... :)**

**More intriguing thing though was that since I brought a huge inflatable mat to avoid sleeping on cold, wooden floor of the classroom we were stationed in and there was enough space for two people, somehow Ulquiorra usurped the other half so that we ended up sleeping together :) And since there was no way to fall asleep with Renji and Byakuya snoring nearby, the two of us together with Tifa, huddled inside her sleeping bag right next to us were passing time by listening to quite an interesting set of stories about Ulqui's older brother and his boyfriend 'till about 2 AM :) Almost bled to death when she shared the experience of asking him whether he's uke or seme. Pretty much detailed description of „it depends on the mood" answer... *nosebleed***

**Anyway... I just wanted to share the experience with you, 'cause it was so much fun and now tune in to this little prologue. It's short, I know, but don't worry it's just meant to lure you into the story :)**

**Main pairing is favourite Byakuya/Renji, accompanied by little Gin/Aizen right here, Gin/Rangiku and Ulqui/Hime too... Rated M for future chapters. :)**

**Enjoy!**

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Aizen Sousuke has been standing on a balcony overlooking the fortress of Las Noches for nearly twelve hours now. He hadn't moved, narrowed eyes the color of hot milk chocolate set somewere beyond its walls where the vast sea of sand drowning in ever-lasting night that was Hueco Mundo stretched as far as an eye could see. The seal has been broken and the gates opened. He could feel it with every fibre of his being. Essence of pure evil, carried by the wind it made even him tremble ever so slightly. If only he could command such power. Power not even the Hōgyoku itself could be compared to, he would truly be the Lord of all. But at the same time he was very well aware that trying to obtain it without considering the matter very carefully would be a suicide even for the god he had become. Unless he would be able to learn how to control it.

"Ya sure it's a good idea, Aizen-taichou?" a voice spoke from behind his back, soft, casual with a pronounced Kyoto accent.

Aizen didn't move, only his lips curled in an amused smile.

"How is it that you've always been able to predict my thoughts even before they formed in my own mind," he turned his head slightly to gaze at the intruder from the corner of his eye. "...Gin?"

Ichimaru bounced off the wall he's been leaning onto for the past few minutes. Short silver hair dangling over his forhead and seemingly closed eyelids he walked lazily to stand at Aizen's side, omnipresent grin spread over hatchet face.

"I Like to call it my special ability." he said.

Sousuke turned to face his former lieutenant, regarding him with curiosity as if he was something of mild interest to him before long slender fingers reached out to cup pointed chin. Ichimaru's eyes opened for a second to reveal two perfect glittering sapphires.

"One of many, I'm certain." he purred and a single strand of dark brown hair tickled Gin's cheek as he leaned in, lips brushing gently against the thin flushed ones.

Ichimaru would accept his superior's demands even if it wasn't for the flow of the massive raw reiatsu crushing on every single cell in his body, charging it like electricity. He didn't need to be reminded of his role in this god's great game of chess. His mouth opened slightly to allow the impatient tongue to slip through, pulling both men into a long, drawn and demanding kiss. Mild taste of blood only boosted the pleasure of it. Lack of any emotions reflected in every stroke of their tongues.

However neither could entirely supress a moan when their lips parted. Unbeliavable as it was given his general appearance, Aizen Sousuke was a passionate man with very little patience when it came to something he wanted. And Ichimaru Gin could be described as a kind of obssession of his, because no matter how long their relationship lasted and no matter how it had evolved since the early days, Gin was the only thing here in Hueco Mundo the former 5th Division Captain could neither entirely control nor precisely predict. And the fact that at any moment Shinsou could strike at his turned back invigorated Aizen's senses, making him want to crush the slim bony frame with his own body and pressure of his reiatsu untill not a single grain of defiance remained and will to betray him lay crumbled under his feet.

But then there would be no one to fulfill the role of the god's jester. And gods didn't like getting bored.

"It has begun." Aizen spoke calmly after a few minutes of silent contemplation over all these things, eyes fixed somewhere beyond Las Noches once again. "How long will it take them to realize what's happening, I wonder."

"Should we give 'em a nudge?" the wide grin spread over Ichimaru's face anew.

Aizen shook his head imperceptibly. "First we need to find the third host and I don't suppose even Soul Society would be that thick-headed as to not ask for our assistance themselves. After all, if it comes to it, they will be destroyed as well as Hueco Mundo and the Material World." his smile widened. "Should they attempt to contact us, I'm leaving the matter in your responsible hands, Gin."

Ichimaru's eyebrows jumped up for a moment. He had his doubts about going back to Soul Society, even though he did his best to detach himself from those people and not just by amusing himself with this slightly confusing and extremely pleasurable relationship with this arrogant, yet in many ways brilliant former captain of his. Set of images flashed through his mind – sky-blue eyes smiling and a warm touch he had almost forgotten. Feelings burried deep within his soul for so long came rushing up, as strong as ever no matter how much he strived to deny having anything of the sort.

"Ya bein' mean, Aizen-taichou. What did lil' ol' me do ta deserve such a thin'?" he could tell Aizen was intentionaly teasing him by putting him in charge of Soul Society-related aspect of the mission and he hated him for that, knowing full well only a single slip could destroy everything.

"I simply have great confidence in your abilities." Sousuke closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before opening them again and Gin could swear there was a smirk playing with his handsome features for just a blink of an eye. "Now, assemble the Espada. I need to have a little chat with them."

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**Well now, there is definitely something sinister going on again, so stay tunned. Though updates are going to be quite irregular because of much studying and shit like that...**

**Please review, it gets my spirits up so much! :) Thank you! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again :) A few things I forgot to add earlier...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, if I did Tousen would be chopped to pieces the moment he had crossed blades with Kenpachi... :)**

**Spoilers are for SS and HM arcs and everything in Bleach manga... and I'm trying to stay IC, honest! :D**

**Also I'm not a native speaker and even though I'm doing my best to correct each thing before it's released, there are bound to be a few mistakes hiding somewhere... so please bear with me! :)**

**Reviews are much appreciated, thank you.**

**Enjoy!**

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"Bring them here, quickly!"

"We need more bandages!"

"What we need is more everything and that's not gonna get itself!"

"Then what are you standing around for?"

"I'm not..."

"Stop arguing and do your job or get the hell outta here!"

Renji stirred, his mind only very reluctantly taking in the quarrel of voices around him. He wanted to open his eyes but signals from his brain only kept getting lost somewhere along the way. He was uncomfortably aware of searing pain paralysing his body which felt like it was suddenly made out of led and he couldn't understand where it had come from. What the hell was going on? Where was he? What happened? He needed to know.

_Move._

His limbs refused to comply.

_Move!_

Another failed attempt followed by a surge of panic gripping his insides with its ice-cold fist.

_MOVE!_

Tips of his fingers twitched. Relief spread through Abarai Renji's beaten body, the small victory encouraging him to try again. And this time he felt his whole hands move slightly and eyelids cracked open.

A dark blurr of a figure was towering over him. He tried to focus on it, it seemed somewhat familiar. With a few quick blinks his vision cleared a little more so that he could see a flash of silver in painful contrast with raven hair and a long snow-white scarf falling over a Captain's haori. Very slowly, mindful of the numerous wounds he had quite suddenly realized he must have suffered -otherwise he wouldn't be in so much pain right now- Renji dared to turn his head and his eyes fell on firmly clenched fist resting along slim hips but a few inches from his nose.

He tried to speak, but his throat was dry and sore. Taste of blood filled his mouth and for a moment he thought it was going to suffocate him.

"T... tai... chou..." it was but a whimper that scraped its way through his parched lips, but enough to draw attention.

"Hurry, he's still alive!" someone called urgently. „We need somewhere to prepare for surgery!"

Yet another voice Renji recognized as one of those that woke him up answered with an unmistakable hint of exhaustion and distress. "But there is nowhere to-"

"Most of the 6th Divison is either dead or here. You are free to use the barracks if you wish." the sound of those words chilled to the bone, but Renji could see deep obsidian eyes burning with anger as they focused on him if only for a split second.

"T-thank you, Kuchiki-taichou!" was the last thing his sences processed before he was yet again pulled back into the loving embrace of unconsciousness.

o*O*o

He felt warm. Wrapped in a blanket, craddled and cared for. Kept alive. It was a wonderful sensation and he only wished he could stay like that forever. But there it was - something calling to him. Not a voice. Not even a sound as such, only some kind of presence close to him, wishing him to open his eyes. Renji drew a deep breath and suddenly he became aware he had a body. Chest heaved as lungs filled with air redolent of spring flowers and honey even though it was already September. He inhaled again and another sensation assaulted his senses – the twittering of birds resonating in his ears.

A soothing touch on his hand forced his eyelids apart. At first everything seemed blurry and surreal, however after a while his eyes got used to their surroundings and fell onto a pair of great pools of indigo.

"Renji..." a voice whispered, colored with emotion, friendly and familiar and hot salty drops started falling onto his cheek.

It took a while before Abarai realized they were tears. His fingers enclosed around the small hand resting in his. He didn't want her to cry anymore. There was no reason to.

"Rukia." he murmured reassuringly, still unable to use his vocal cords properly. He was glad for her presence, it made him feel tranquil. Up to a point when there was a slap adding a fresh type of pain into his already aching body.

"You idiot!" Rukia clutched his hand and her yell brought Renji back from the stupor caused by her slapping his face when he had least expected it.

He blinked again, frown forming on his tattoed forehead. "What the hell was that for?" he demanded, but it only made Kuchiki Rukia's already red and puffy eyes fill with more tears.

Her little fingers entwined with his as she looked at him, relieved but with an unmistakable reproach. "Why do you _always_ have to get yourself beaten up like that?"

Renji's anger faded instantly at the sight. "O-oi, Rukia! I'm not dead or anything..." he managed feebly.

„You were! Stupid Renji! Idiot Renji!" her voice broke in a renewed wave of tears and sobs.

What? What was she talking about? How could he be dead? If he were, he wouldn't be here right now. Or would he?

"W-what do you mean 'were'?" was a simple question, first thing to come to his still-slumbering mind.

Rukia's eyes were wet and glassy as they met with his and then turned away. "When they brought you to Unohana-taichou, many of the 6th Division were already dead. Everyone thought you were among them untill you regained consciousness for a moment. She said you _were_ dead for a couple of minutes."

Renji stared at her, gears in his brain spinning madly. His men... dead? He remembered darkness and cold and then something shot through his body and he was falling, life gushing out of him. And just when he thought it was all over something came to him, pulled him back. And then he heard voices and someone was moving and shouting. He saw Kuchiki Byakuya standing over him, fists clenched. Renji shivered as he remembered the fire that burned in his captain's eyes.

"What's going on, Renji? Nii-sama wouldn't tell me a thing. He left immediately after you were taken care of." she frowned. "I've never seen him like that before."

"I have." a small voice came from behind, it made Rukia spun around and as she did so Renji could get a peek at the newcomer. "When we found you in Hueco Mundo, near death after your battle with that Espada."

He was short, shinigami robes hanging on slim body, dark eyes -making him permanently look like he was about to cry- hidded beneath a courtain of sleek black hair.

"Hanatarou!" Rukia said in surprise.

Yamada Hanatarou, 7th Seat of the 4th Division bowed and entered the room, though only reluctantly as if he was afraid of something. And Renji just realized why that was – these quarters were no 6th Divison barracks. He recognized the gardens behind Hanatarou's back and the soft fragrance of sakura blossoms that he always associated with Byakuya, now somehow dominated over the scent of other flowers. They were at the Kuchiki manor.

"Rukia-san." Hanatarou bowed again with a smile and knelt down next to her. "Abarai-fukutaichou."

"What are you doing here?" she asked, scrutinizing him from head to foot with obvious suspicion.

"Kuchiki-taichou sent me to check on Abarai-fukutaichou." he replied nervously, like it was something he was going to be punished for.

Her eyes went wide. "Nii-sama did...?"

Hanatarou noded, his hands reached for Renji, examining the bandaged wounds. Their eyes met for a moment and Renji saw fear and respect. He realized that despite Yamada's appearance, he was far from being the idiot everyone was taking him for. He had a gift of seeing many things others would not even if they were standing right infront of them.

Abarai hissed as a sharp pain shot through his midsection and ran up to the right shoulder. He had moved a bit too much. The healer immediately jumped and pushed Renji gently back onto the futton. "Please, you need to take it easy for a few days, Abarai-fukutaichou!" he let out a high-pitched squeak "Your injuries were severe. Unohana-taichou did her best to save you, but healing needs time."

Renji did not bother with protesting. He really did feel somewhat weak. He took a deep breath instead as the pain slowly died away.

"Hanatarou," Rukia regarded the 7th Seat intently. "Where did nii-sama go? What's going on here?"

Yamada shifted uncomfortably, his face the battlefield of duty and compassion. "I'm afraid I'm not allowed to tell you, Kuchiki-san. Not that I know much myself, really..." his voice trailed off, eyes focused on Renji's wounds with suspicious determination.

Brows knitted together, Rukia shot a quick glance at Abarai who also did everything he could to keep his eyes off her. That settled it. There was something fishy going on and she will find out what it is.

"Yoshi!" Hanatarou stated after a few moments of more than uncomfortable silence that fell between the three of them. "Everything seems to be healing properly. I should get back to my duties." he jumped to his feet and bowed for the third time. "Ittekimasu." and he left, his words hanging over them like a heavy blanket.

"Renji-" Rukia started, stubbornly refusing to let the matter go. Not like this.

"Rukia. 'S fine, really. I'm fine." the Vice-Captain put on an unconvincing smile and raised his arms to prove to her the veracity of his words. It cost him another shot of searing pain which he somehow managed to mask, though he was unsure whether or not it had fooled her at all. He knew she wasn't going to ask about his health but this was the least he could do not to seem rude. "You go now, get some fresh air or somethin'. Stretch your legs."

His smile was forced and Rukia felt her temper rising, however she knew better than to argue with her childhood friend; not when he was beaten up like this. She will find out what's this about soon enough and if he won't tell her, somebody else surely will.

She stood up. "I have orders to return to the Material World as soon as possible." she said blankly. "I'm leaving tomorrow." and she left as well.

Abarai let out a drawn sigh. Rukia was pissed and he couldn't do a thing about it. He couldn't remember exactly what had happened for the life of him, but he knew he took almost the whole 6th Division with him. To think that only few of them survived... Image of Rikichi suddenly popped up in his head. Renji sincerely thanked all the gods there were for being able to convince the ever-eager boy to stay with Kuchiki Byakuya.

He raised his hand, looking at his fingers clenching and unclenching for a moment as if making sure he has regained full control over the whole of his body, then let it gently fall on tattooed forhead and run through loose crimson strands of hair spread over the pillow under his head like a pool of blood. The movement resulted in renewed wave of pain.

_Things keep getting better and better. _He thought, wincing.

**/Oh, you have no idea, Pineapple!/**

Renji sat up so fast at the sound of a voice he had never heard before, he almost passed out from piercing jolts of pain searing through his slowly healing, heavily bandaged wounds. Looking around, however, he could see noting but an empty room. What was that just now? Was he going mad? Hearing voices?

A jubilant laughter resonated in his mind, answering all the questions coming to the red-head's mind by raising many more.

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**Note: Future dialogues between characters and their 'inner companions' are to be put behind slashes, just so you know :) Just like the one above. I was planning on giving each of them his own font, however the website doesn't agree with me... :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey all!**

**I'm sorry it took so long, I'm rather busy at the moment...college and stuff, not even a proper vacation this year Y_Y And I'm pissed about the recent events in Bleach manga Y_Y Not telling any details for those who don't read it, but... *crying***

**Anyway, in case someone's wondering, this takes place during yet another studio recess so everyone is still happy and alive before we get back to Hueco Mundo and the Winter War :)**

**Enjoy, as always :)**

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First, it was but a soft nudge somewhere in the back of her mind, however as she continued her training its weight increased and it became more and more difficult to ignore. Dark, ominous presence like nothing she had ever felt before. Suddenly a freezing fist gripped her insides and Tatsuki toppled over in the middle of a jump and fell hard onto the tatami. She gasped for breath as the fall knocked all air out of her lungs and rolled over.

"Arisawa!" the teacher came running toward her, concern and confusion mixed on his wrinkled face. "Are you hurt?"

Tatsuki propped herself up on an elbow and shook her head, breathing still shallow and rapid. It felt like something was pressing on her body, making it difficult to even move. But there was no use telling him that. He wouldn't understand. He didn't have the ability she did. There was only one person who might know what's going on.

"I'm sorry, sensei. I don't feel good. May I go home earlier today, please?" she got up swiftly, though it had cost her much more effort than usual.

The teacher nodded, still confused and not convinced.

"Thank you." Tatsuki took up proper posture and bowed.

"Make sure you're not going alone, Arisawa!" she heard him calling after her as she gathered her things and left the dojo.

Tatsuki didn't even bother to go change. Trying to calm herself as much as possible, she ran out of the chool grounds and towards the riverbank, a single name swirling in her mind – Urahara Kisuke. If there was someone who could give a proper explanation of what has been happening these past few days, it was him. That weird guy in striped hat and sandals with aura of tremendous power surrounding him.

Deep within her own thoughts, it wasn't untill she crossed the brigde and turned to run along the peacefully flowing waters bathing in red and gold from the setting sun, when she heard someone calling out her name. She stopped abruptly and whirled around to see a long mane of orange hair flipping behind her as Inoue Orihime tried to catch up with her best friend.

"Tatsuki-chan, you're so quick!" Inoue panted, catching her breath.

Tatsuki stared at her. Why hasn't she noticed her untill now? She could always easily sense Orihime wherever she was, except that strange place Ichigo went to bring her back from. But now...

It must have been that sinister presence overpowering her senses as well as her body.

"Tatsuki-chan?" Inoue's anxious voice brought the black-haired teen back from her reverie and she caught herself staring blankly somewhere beyond her friend's worried grey eyes.

"What?" she snapped a little bit more harshly than she intended and the orange-haired girl backed off with a start. "Oh, I'm sorry, Hime. It's just—„

The bone-crushing presence strengthened again, pressure on Arisawa's body caused her throat to clench painfully, she couldn't breathe. Her sight became hazy and drops of sweat trailed from her forehead down her cheeks, pinching in her eyes. She felt herself dropping to all fours, gasping for air her lungs were so desperately short of.

As if from a great distance, Tatsuki heard -yet again- Orihime calling her, but she couldn't do anything to ease her friend's fear. She was weak and cold and burning at the same time, though unable to scream and she saw images flashing before her closed eyelids. Memories of life long past, life that wasn't hers. And a maniacal laughter rang in her ears, getting louder and louder. Her hands darted up to her temples to make it stop, but it only kept getting worse.

**/Hello, my little friend! Pleasure to make your acquaintance. We are going to have soooo much fun together!/**

And with another wave of laughter, Tatsuki had at last succumbed to the dark inviting arms of unconsciousness.

o.O.o

Kurosaki Ichigo fell to one knee, wiping a small strip of blood oozing out of the right-hand corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. Bronze eyes rose up to meet his opponents. He could deal with hollows, arrancars, other Shinigami and even the Espada swiftly and without hesitation, however being attacked by street thugs on daily basis was starting to get a little too annoying. He could see it everywhere - unreasonable, violent behaviour of people he knew to be calm and level-headed and his bright, orange hair had never before drawn so much attention. He didn't understand what was happening, but it was not natural. That much he knew.

Ichigo scooped up the remnants of blood within his mouth and spat it out.

"Oh, look! I think we hurt him, boys!" the gang leader rubbed his knuckles and grabbed Ichigo by the collar of his school uniform. "Can't take much, freak, can you?"

"You have no idea." Kurosaki smiled and kicked hard, his knee sinking deep into the thug's stomach.

He growled, letting go of the orange-haired teenager. Ichigo didn't wait for an invitation, his fist shot up to meet the man's chin. He rose up a few inches and fell hard onto the ground. The others cried out and charged at the pesky high-schooler, who dared to fight back only to land on top of their leader, bruised and howling with pain.

A few hits, however, still reached parts of Ichigo's body and he clutched his dislocated arm, spitting more blood as he walked away. This needs to stop. And there was only one man who could tell him how to do it. Urahara Kisuke.

"Kurosaki-kun!" Ichigo spun around at the sound of his name as he climbed up a set of stairs from the riverbank.

Inoue Orihime was waving at him, long hair tied into a ponytail, something hanging limply over her shoulders as she dragged it toward him.

Kurosaki's pupils dilated with shock as he recognized Arisawa Tatsuki, breaking to a run to get to them before Inoue's knees give way.

"Inoue! What happened?" he dropped to his knees, supporting Orihime, who could not after all keep standing under Arisawa's weight any longer.

She shook her head, breathing heavily. "I-I don't know. I saw her running along the river and- and called after her and she was kind of dazed and then she just collapsed!" tears prickled in Orihime's grey eyes. "I can't heal her with Shun Shun Rikka..." she finaly looked at him and gasped.

"It's just few scratches, Inoue, nothing to worry about." Ichigo waved his hand dismissively but a brightly glowing shield had already formed before his eyes and he felt warmth spreading through his bruised aching face and into his arm. When it dissapeared, his injuries were healed.

"Thanks, Inoue." he smiled at his classmate and heaved Arisawa onto his back. "Let's get her to Urahara Shop. Hat n' sandals' gonna have to explain a lot."

o.O.o

It was quite lively at the Urahara Store when they arrived. Too lively considering the usual clientele visiting this tiny back-alley spiritual Candy shop, ran by a Shinigami and former Captain of the Gotei 13.

For a moment Ichigo only stared at the ruckus – people seated along tiny, round table, chattering over one another and he knew each and every single one of them. Apart from the usual staff Ishida was here as well as Rukia and the 10th Division Captain Hitsugaya, who looked like he would rather be anywhere else. Most likely because there really was nobody else willing to take the job, whatever it was. Now, as he looked over the assembled, Ichigo felt hundred percent sure that there's something wrong and it must have been big.

"What the hell's going on here?" he yelled to draw their attention. It worked perfectly; all eyes now fixed on him, Arisawa and Inoue standing at the door frame.

"Kurosaki-san!" Urahara jumped to his feet, waving his fan, however ever-present smile faded as eyes fell upon the unconscious body over the spiky-head's shoulders. "What happened?"

"That's what I want you to tell me." Ichigo said irritably and put Arisawa into Tessai's waiting arms to be carried into the back room. "Somehow she collapsed and Inoue can't heal her."

The shop owner's brows knitted together, dissapearing momentarily under his striped hat.

"And what are all of you doing here anyway?" the teenage Shinigami scanned the people sitting about again with increasing suspicion, bronze eyes narrowed, frown deepening.

Ishida Uryuu was the first to answer with snorting loudly and pushing sqare glassed up his nose. "Figures you'd be the last to notice, Kurosaki."

A blood-red vein appeared on the orange-haired's temple and he took a deep breath to give the smirking Quincy a piece of his mind. However Urahara seemed to have come to at the precise moment Ichigo was opening his mouth.

"Please sit down," he said without any trace of his usual cheerfulness, fan in his hand snapped shut. "Both of you."

They did so without questions, the grim expression on Urahara's face and the serious tone of his voice reasons enough for even Kurosaki to forget all about being pissed.

"Your friend cannot be healed, because there's nothing physically wrong with her." the Shinigami continued, also descending onto the tatami once more. All turned quiet to listen to what he had to say. "Kurosaki-san, have you noticed any strange behaviour from anyone these past few days?"

Ichigo scowled, trying not to look into Urahara's emerald eyes, which made him feel like he was being x-rayed. "Well yeah. It's been a madhouse for some time now. I mean, I've seen people who never raised a hand picking fights over stupidities and my hair color is like a beacon for every shithead in the city! I'm being attacked on sight by punks I've never even seen before." he looked up to overlook the others, all bearing the same grave faces. Only Ishida was hidden behind his glasses, expression unreadable. "I KNOW damn well something's going on, so just spit it out!"

Urahara let out a sigh, lowering his hat into his lap, thumbing its hem. "I'm afraid it's a bit more complicated. You see, before the coming of the Royal Family that now rules over Soul Society, the Universe was writhing in chaos. It was due to a single being, more like power without a form, made of pure evil. A god, if you wish, here in Japan known as Amatsu-Mikaboshi, otherwise Devil, Satan or whatever else you might think of – they are all one and the same. This... power's been sealed when worlds were created and protected by three Guardians, each assigned to one world. However, from time to time, Mikaboshi finds a way out. When the seal grows weak or shatters completely it _leaks out_ of its prison, corrupting everything in its path. The last time this happened, it started the Second World War." he paused to let the information sink in. "Each time the three Guardians are released as well to find a suitable hosts to enable them to use their given powers to seal Mikaboshi again. So far it seems like we have found two of them."

Ichigo's bronze eyes darted from one person to another, looking for a sign of all this being a practical joke, but it didn't come. Inoue only began nervously rubbing the frills on her skirt, eyes wide.

"So let me get this straight," he said finally in an attempt to make sense of it all and trying hard not to laugh. "Right now, there's some kinda evil god on the loose, starting wars and making people jump at each other's throats just for the fun of it?"

"Not just people." Hitsugaya Toushirou shifted, large, aquamarine eyes sinking into Ichigo's. "The whole district of Rukongai, Inuzuri has been anihilated and when we sent Abarai and the 6th Division to investigate, most of them never returned. Even the fuku-taichou himself was considered dead for a while."

Kurosaki's eyes grew wide. Something that could easily massacre a whole squad of shinigami AND a Vice-Captain as well? He couldn't imagine what must have happened. Renji was strong, one of the strongest Shinigami he had ever met and yet... and then it hit him. "How can you consider someone dead 'for a while'? Like brain death or something?"

"Not quite," Urahara took the word. "Abarai-san's lifespan has been prolonged when he became the host of one of the Guardians, the one assigned to Soul Society. It revived him and now it resides within his soul. And if my assuptions are correct, the other Guardian is possessing this human friend of yours you brought."

"Tatsuki-chan?" Inoue let out a gasp. "Is she going to be alright?"

"She's not in any kind of danger, as long as the hollow needs her to fulfill it's duty—"

"_Hollow?_" Ichigo choked, eyes now the size of saucers, images of his own inner hollow whirling in his mind. He jumped up. "And you're just okay with it? There's no way I let a frickin' bastart like that possess one of my friends!"

"KU-RO-SA-KI!" Hitsugaya's strong voice made Ichigo freeze on the spot. "Shut up and listen!"

"But—"

"As I said," Urahara was watching his fingers playing with the striped hat intently as he spoke. "There is nothing to worry about, the girl is not in danger as long as her Guardian needs her and then," his voice raised to interrupt Kurosaki as he opened his mouth to argue again. "It will be too late. The banishment of Mikaboshi requires all of the Guardian's life force and more, that's why hosts are essential for the Ritual of Banishment. When it is completed, Guardians dissapear and another three take over their duties and the circle repeats itself."

Ichigo slowly sat back on his heels, chewing on what had just been said. Ishida again pushed his glasses up his nose and decided to take the iniciative, looking at Inoue whose face was the battlefield of curiosity, anxiety and hesitation, her eyes darting from Kurosaki to the room where Tatsuki has been taken to and back.

"Urahara-san, you mentioned three Guardians. Where is the third one?" he asked calmly, thinking a few steps ahead, as always.

Kisuke exchanged a fleeting look with Hitsugaya. "Well, there is one for this world, one for Soul Society and one for—"

"Hueco Mundo." Kurosaki nipped in and Urahara nodded. "So we need Aizen to help us, is that it?"

"He doesn't really have a choice. Nor do we." Histugaya said. "If Mikaboshi is not sealed soon, the Universe will get back to what it was before the creation of the worlds. Everything will be destroyed."

"And why don't we just kill the bastard and be done with it? He would never escape again and everything's fine." said Ichigo, unable to understand why everyone makes so much fuss around it.

"It can't be killed." Urahara shook his head, dismissing the idea completely. "Every creation, whether human, konpaku or hollow has two sides – good and evil. Without one there can't be the other."

Ichigo let out an irritated snort and ran his hands through his hair, getting up. "Alright, so let's go talk to Aizen and his buddies and hope he's gonna be smart enough to cooperate or I'll kick him into a pulp."

For the first time since they met, Hitsugaya made a sound suspiciously like a chuckle. "I seriously doubt you would be able to do that, Kurosaki." boyish face went austere again. "And we have already contacted _him_." he made sure to properly spit the last word. "Now we need to take the second Guardian and its host to Soul Society. There the veil to Mikaboshi's prison is weakened the most and there it must be sealed again."

"I will prepare the Senkai Gate for all of you to make it through. We'll be ready in two days." Kisuke gave each of the high-schoolers confident smile and got to his feet as well.

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**Right... just for information, after the WW2 Japan collectively agreed upon that what happened during the war was indeed the doing of an evil spirit Mikaboshi. I've made quite an extensive research on the matter to make sure I got it right :)**

**Also, anybody else wondering who's gonna be the third Guardian? :) Let's make it a guessing game... the winner gets a kiss and can make a request for the next fic (even though you can do that anyway) which will take priority? :) Whaddya say? :)**

**As usual, reviews are more than welcome :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Rejoice, the moment of truth had come! :) Who is the third Guardian? There was but a single correct answer! :) Congratulation to tellie-san who got it right, here is a kiss *chu* and if you wish to, just drop me a line about the next fic, you'd like to read, as promised! :)**

**For the rest of you, I hope you're going to enjoy this, because we're nearly done with the introduction and ready to jump head-on to the adventure part of the story! :)**

**And last but not least, some fluffy smut coming up in the following chapters, so stay tunned!**

**Have fun!**

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Chaos ruled over Seireitei now bathing in golden rays of sun perched high above in the skies of forget-me-not blue since early morning hours and it certainly wasn't going to get any better any time soon as all capable hands were preparing for the arrival of rather special and not at all welcome guests.

After days of uncertainity and dark rumors flying around, becoming more frightening and even more mendatious with each retelling, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, the 1st Division Captain and commander of the Gotei 13 finally realized the only possible way to prevent any more damage is to reveal the truth. Or at least a part of it. And Renji was glad for the decision. Even though all of Seireitei knew now the arrancar were coming as well –although with the exception of the highest ranked Shinigami they could only guess exactly why that was- it meant a certain weight lift from the depths of the red-head's stomach. He felt guilty about not being able to tell anything to Rukia and when she left for the Material World, stubbornly refusing to talk to him, he couldn't help to also feel a bit sorry for Urahara Kisuke who was bound to become the next target of her investigation attepmts. But now it all seemed to have turned up for the best, given he had to put up with his Guardian chittering all day long in his head or Byakuya releaving him of even the most routine paperwork so that there was absolutely nothing to do. The fact that there was also this _delegation_ from Hueco Mundo coming on Captain-Commander's personal invitation to assist the Shinigami in solving this confounded situation -which Renji still couldn't fully comprehend- didn't make him feel any better.

Abarai subconsciously let out a sigh and caught a glimpse of Kuchiki Byakuya's obsidian eyes zeroing in on him for a fraction of a second as they walked through the gate leading to the 1st Division Headquarters. He immidiately straightened up and fell into step with his Captain, always keeping a little distance. His thoughts jupmed to the pending Captain and Vice-Captain meeting they were about to join. Ichigo and the others were invited as well, because of one of their friends becoming a Guardian. To Renji it seemed as though Yamamoto-soutaichou was building an army. But what could a bunch of humans do against the thing that annihilated almost his whole Division? The Quincy, Ishida. He was strong, but was he strong enough to stand a chance against this ancient evil they were all talking about? And Inoue-san wasn't built for battle at all. They shouldn't have brought her... although as he was thinking that, Renji knew very well Inoue Orihime would never have remained behind, even if Ichigo himself tried to persuade her – and that was something given she adored him from the depth of her heart.

Renji could not help to chuckle inwardly. That prat Ichigo, he didn't have the slightest idea...

**/You're one to talk, Pineapple!/**

The sound of his Guardian's voice –blisfully silent untill now- made the red-head jerk, though Byakuya did not seem to have noticed.

**/You wouldn't recognize love even if it was pinching your tattooed ass./**

Renji -determined to ignore the taunts- swallowed an incisive retort, though he couldn't prevent himself not to run his gaze along the regal features of Kuchiki Byakuya's slender frame before him. And those few seconds were enough for him to immediately regret this moment of weakness, because there was a break of such girlish giggles inside his head, he thought his skull might crack in half. From now on, it will be much harder to put up with that pervert of a Guardian.

Fortunately for Renji, however, as he was sinking lower and lower into the black depths of depression, brows furrowing more that usual, they have arrived at the 1st Division inner gardens. Rukia was already waiting by a cluster of trees along with Ishida and Inoue. This must mean that Ichigo and the human girl were already here. Inoue smiled, Ishida pushed his square glasses up his nose and the petite black-haired shinigami gave her childhood friend a nod to let him know she's no longer mad with him as he and his Captain swiftly walked past and dissapeared inside the Headquarters.

Only a handful of Shinigami were still walking through the hallways, apparently to finish their duties before the meeting starts and they need to leave. Each of them stopped as they passed and gave the 6th Division officers a polite greeting. Renji made sure to return the gesture, because Byakuya never did. He was always like that. Not concerning himself with _low-lifes _as he sometimes called these ordinal Shinigami. A single skim through the numbers on the tablets outside the Main Hall when the two turned another corner, let Renji know the only ones still absent were the arrancar.

Still thinking it madness to let their lot roam freely through Seireitei, Renji assumed his position behind Kuchiki Byakuya's back and between the 4th Division Vice-Captain Kotetsu and 8th Division Vice-Captain Ise, spotting the unmistakeable spikes of Ichigo's orange hair standing out painfully as the teen leaned against a wall on the other side of the hall. He looked pissed and impatient and a bit worried, dark-haired girl Renji remotely remembered from his last visit to Karakura standing beside him, looking around insecurely like she was going to wake up from a dream. She must be strong, Renji thought. To withstand the spiritual pressure of all the Captains and Vice-Captains and Yamamoto-soutaichou as well, even though the full extent od their reiatsu was being tightly supressed. No matter how hard he tried, however, the girl's name kept eluding him.

"Stay where you are. They have arrived." Byakuya hissed as if he knew Renji was thinking about getting together with Ichigo, at least for a while before it all begins and the atmosphere changed rapidly as a thick wave of reiatsu washed over all of the assembled. All of them recognized its owner long before he walked through the door, boney hands with long thin fingers shoved inside the sleeves of his white haori, obi of forget-me-not blue tied around skinny waist, white hakama dangling around equaly skinny ankles hidden within black tabi socks in contrast with a pair of white waraji.

"Ain't it nostalgic meetin' ya all here again." Ichimaru Gin grinned broadly, coming to a halt across the hall from Commander Yamamoto.

All eyes fixed on him instantly; some surprised, some disconcerted, though many hateful and apprehensive. The black-haired human girl looked like the air was being forced out of her lungs, threatening to suffocate her from just being this close to the former 3rd Division Captain who did not seem to be concerned with leashing his immense reiatsu like all the others did. There were, however three people to whom this silver-haired man with fox-like face and eyes seemingly shut tight still remained much more than a mere traitor.

Renji's eyes darted to the 10th Division officers. The only thing giving away Matsumoto's distress being her convulsively cluthing her arms, face hidden beneath long, blond locks and Hitsugaya's firmly clutched jaw revealing his inner struggle barely able to hold anger at bay, eyes throwing daggers at his Vice-Captain's childhood friend. Though the temperature within the hall seemed to have dropped a few degrees anyway.

"Sending his lapdog, is he?" the young Captain's boyish voice dripped scorn as he spoke, white brows furrowed slightly. "Coming himself would be too much of a bother, I take it?"

Ichimaru feigned a tremble, grin still wide on his pale pointed face. "So cold! Might seem as though ya ain't glad to see me, 10th Division Taichou-han. And I was lookin' forward for this lil' reunion, ne Izuru?"

The 3rd Division Vice-Captain stiffened, turquoise eyes flew up from beneath a curtain of pale blond hair to meet his former Captain's. His mouth opened and closed again several times -though no sound came out- pale fingers entwining only to keep his hands occupied. He wasn't sure what to say or what to do. Hearing his given name spoken in that sly creeping voice again made his heart jump and his throat clench and he realized his feelings towards the man he had adored for so long haven't changed a single bit. But now they were standing on the opposite sides of the fence. And the 3rd Division learned to rely on him since Ichimaru had left and Kira grew attached to them as one would to his family and he felt proud of them just as much. Even though there was no official Captain, his division was still proud and strong and they looked up to him as their leader. He couldn't destroy it all just because Ichimaru walks in here and decides to sweet-talk Kira's resolve off. He won't allow that to happen, no matter what their relationship might have been like in the past.

"Don't forget your place, Ichimaru Gin." Yamamoto's voice pierced the momentary silence, resonating through the hall very clearly and perhaps a bit too unnaturaly strong followed by a clap of the cane clutched in his wrinkled old hands, hiding Ryuujin Jakka beneath its harmless visage. He set his eyes on the former Shinigami. "Where is the third Guardian?"

Ichimaru's full attention jumped almost immediately to the Captain-Commander, but not before he managed to stare Kira to cast his gaze down to his feet. Provoking the sleeping dragon further would cause unnecessary problems and would probably go against his orders. And whatever the case may be right now, Ichimaru very much liked all parts of his body the way they were. At least for the time being.

"Oia, how rude of me!" he burried long fingers in his silvery hair and stepped aside to reveal two other men looming out of the shadows behind him. Both were wearing long white hakama that seemed to flow around their ankles in a non existent breeze with every move, soft sounds of two pairs of steps muffled by white waraji, just like Gin's.

One was slim and a bit short, hands shover in his pockets, black obi visible beneath the lower hem of his white tail-coat, its collar drawn to thin neck, blending with ivory-colored skin -just like his broken horned mask- in painful contrast with jet-black hair falling into deep eyes the color of malachites. Two slim dark streaks trailed down emotionless face like tears. A complete opposite of the other, whose short and unfastened black and white shirt with rolled-up sleeves revealed tanned, well-built body – despite the gaping hole in his midsection. The flow of muscles underneath the softly bronzed skin combined with fluent cat-like movements spoke of a predator driven by primal instinct to hunt and kill. He couldn't supress his annoyance with being here, defiance shaping his handsome features, narrow pale deep blue eyes darting about in search for prey worthy of his skill. They fell on Ichigo, lingering there just a little bit too long, grin spreading over left cheek, the right one hidden beneath a piece of broken white mask. He tossed his head in aknowledgement of the orange-haired Shinigami's presence as well as daring him to start a fight, few locks of blue hair wobbling from side to side.

Kurosaki's fingers wrapped firmly around Zangetsu's hilt as he stood infront of Arisawa Tatsuki to protect her, teeth gritted, bronze eyes narrowed and ready to accept the challenge. Before he could make another move however, Ichimaru reached for the teal-head and pushed him forward.

"The one yer lookin' for, Captain-Commander." he said, ignoring the arrancar staring at him with expression of one wishing nothing more than to rip him apart limb from limb. "Sexta Espada, Grimmjow Jeagerjaques."

Judging from the look on their faces, many of the assembled recognized Grimmjow the moment they saw him and they were also aware of the other Espada's identity.

"And Cuatro Espada, Ulquiorra Schiffer I presume?" Yamamoto's gaze fixed into the great malachite eyes with slit-like pupils as if trying to read their owner's thoughts.

"Hajimemashite." Ulquiorra faced the Captain-Commander without any change in his ever-present stoic expression and deathly stillness fell upon the hall and its occupants as they waited for the soutaichou and petite Espada to break the eye contact.

"Unacceptable." Genryusai's cane hit the wooden planks again and a few of the Shinigami assembled jerked slightly, the sound bringing them out of their reverie. He turned back to Ichimaru Gin. "I will not have any unnecessary danger threaten Soul Society's safety. Only the Guardian is allowed to stay."

Ichimaru's smile dissapeared, hand ran through silver hair. "Now that ain't good, Yamamoto-soutaichou. Aizen-taichou specifically ordered the three of us to help ya. Take it or leave it." the grin returned as the former 3rd Division Captain stood his ground, unwilling to budge even under Yamamoto's x-raying gaze.

"Wery well." the old Captain uttered after a few seconds of regarding all the possibilities and those two simple words caused an explosion of chatter as almost all the assembled Captains and Vice-Captains wanted to express their dissaproval with the ludicrous idea of having a traitor and two Espada running around Seireitei. "However," Yamamoto's strong voice silenced them all immediately. "All three of you are to surrender your swords untill such time as they are needed in battle."

"Tch! Like hell I will!" Grimmjow couldn't stand it any longer. It was enough he had been forced to come here with the two people he loathed above all others, having no say in this because of that fucked up Guardian business. He was still furious with himself for being unable to stand against Aizen and that impossible reiatsu of his he so enjoyed to focus on hi whenever he felt like Grimmjow might run out of control – and that was pretty often these days. But now there was no Aizen, thus the Sexta felt in no immediate danger of having his bones crushed to splinters.

However, the Lord of Hueco Mundo had a very good reason for sending Ulquiorra to keep an eye on Grimmjow as well as Ichimaru himself. The Cuatro was the only one capable of doing so. The only one Aizen could trust to fulfill his wishes to the letter.

"O-oi, Ulquiorra, you bastard!" the teal-haired Espada managed, but the arrancar already swept past and snatched his associate's and Ichimaru's katana, handing them over to the Captain-Commander without so much as a word, single look of the green eyes preventing any further complaits.

"And you will also stay under strict surveillance of the Onmitsukidou at all times." the old Shinigami continued and the 2nd Division Captain Soi Fon nodded briefly, thrusting an elbow into her Vice-Captain's stomach to wake him up and make him pay attention. "Should you attempt any kind of misbehaviour, you will be dealt with swiftly and without mercy, crisis or no."

"Hai." Ulquiorra noded, still with that vexing expressionless mask of a face, taking the lead for no particular reason"

"Oia, seems like we've been overruled, ne, Grimmjow-san?" Ichimaru's attempt to look sheepish made him look even more like a fox sneaking into a hen-house. Grimmjow snorted. Once again he couldn't help to feel like an obedient dog and it pissed him off to no end.

**/Dear, dear. Why are you frowning like that all the time, you look like you've got a stick up your ass./**

The sound of his Guardian's voice made the Espada jerk in surprise for he was still fully concentrating on fuming about his inability to rip Ulquiorra's face off.

_What did you say? _He growled, though no sound came out aloud.

**/You heard me, Puss. Last time I looked you had ears!/**

_Shut the fuck up!_

The guardian broke into sniggers, enjoying Grimmjow getting more livid by the second. For another half an hour -untill the meeting was over- the two of them kept exchanging one insult after another, not listening to Yamamoto going on about their being accomodated in the 6th Division barracks and forbidden to leave without his permission or tomorrow's journey to Inuzuri to perform the Ritual of Banishment. And by the end of the day Grimmjow felt so exhausted he couldn't even find the strength to curse whomever it was that made an Oni his Guardian.

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**Well, that's it for today :)**

**Anyway, a bit of explanation is in order:**

**Oni - creatures from Japanese folklore, most commonly translated as devils, ogres or trolls. Usually they are depicted as giant creatures with sharp fangs and claws wearing nothing but tiger-skin loincloth around their waist and carrying an iron club called kanabo.**

**P.S. No, I did not choose Oni as Grimm's Guardian because of any similarities, it's just that there are so many different types of yokai (spirits) in Japanese legends and this seemed the most common and quite the opposite of the Guardian I assigned to Renji. You'll see in the next chapter :)**

**And also, I appologize for any grammatical mistakes, did my best to correct them :)**

**Please review, your opinions are much appreciated!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello again, my beloved readers I apologize for the delay... *bows* =3 **

**In case you wonder - no, this chapter is not absolutely useless only to give me time to write a more interesting one. It has a deep meaning related to what happens afterwards :) Or at least a kind of meaning... I hope... :)**

**And many thanks to my beloved new beta Evil-Peach for helping me with this, especially with the quotation marks, since where I come from we write them differently :)**

**Also, for those who might have forgotten, I am a yaoi fangirl, which means this fic is M rater not only for language, which isn't that bad after all, but mainly for the pairings... I'm saying this now because there's a nice fluffy lemon coming up when you finish reading these little pieces of mind of mine and not just any lemon, but a yaoi (male x male), so I'm not having ANY complaints and such, because you've all been warned, right? And if you're just interested in the story, please skip the smut part and read on, it's not really that long.**

**For those of you who share my hentai fantasies, please be seated, fasten your seatbelts and enjoy the ride :) Please review, it makes me very happy to read your opinions and it helps a lot with writing as well... and as usual there are notes at the end of this chapter :)**

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A single drop of sweat made it's way along prominent clavicle and further south, changing directions with every curve, breath and move of lines of lean muscles underneath flawless porcelain skin now flushed with heat of desire until it was swept away by an exploring tongue heading towards it on it's way over and around one of rosy nipples, hardening slightly under the unusual –and not at all unwelcome- amount of attention.

A kiss. A lick. And two calloused fingers tantalizingly pinched its brother so that it wouldn't feel all left out.

"S-stop...! This is –ungh!" the pleading whimper died away in a renewed wave of moans. Hands with long slender fingers tugged at white sheets, pulling them down to where two men lay huddled together, the soft fabric making another feeble protests sound even more incomprehensible as lips buried within its folds.

He pressed his body onto the one writhing beneath him with every touch, kiss, lick and breath. Tips of his fingers loitering across heated skin of heaving chest, stomach and abdomen to where a thin line of hair lead from small belly button to a tempting hardness standing beautifully out against pale skin of long slender legs trying to hide the flushed heated flesh twitching in anticipation.

Another set of barely audible protests filled the room as tips of fingers began caressing smooth skin of inner thighs coaxing those graceful slim knees apart, however they may have never been uttered for all the attention they received.

Once his endeavors succeeded, hands firmly gripped small hips and pulled the lithe body lower so that the edge of the bed the man was leaning onto leveled with the back of his head when he tilted his face up to face his lover, strands of raven hair falling loosely over dark heavy-lidded eyes glazed with passion and cheeks the color of cherry blossoms.

The sight of that so rare expression on otherwise measured and regal mien of Kuchiki Byakuya was invigorating and he knew he was tormenting the man as well as himself with deliberately trailing his hands along every curve of that beautiful body without touching or even getting close enough to the most intimate part. But he wanted to hear the voice so used to giving orders it was hard to imagine it husky and thick with lust. He wanted it to plead with him. To beg for his touch.

"You like it, don't you?" it was but a whisper, provocative, arousing and daring. "When I touch..." another excited groan left the kiss-swollen lips and eyelids slid closed, hiding the obsidian gaze as strong fingers wrapped around the noble's considerable arousal moving up and down at an agonizingly slow pace. "Say it."

Sword calloused thumb swept a single bead of precum leaking out of the small slit on top of it's darkened head and Byakuya gritted his teeth, turning away from those honest deep-brown eyes now gleaming with red in the dim bedroom light. And the hand on his hard member had stopped and instead spread his legs further apart while the rest of his lover's body rose up to tower over the 6th Division Captain whose silky black hair were now spread over the bed sheet in contrast with the snow-white fabric and fingers cupped small chin, forcing him to look up to meet the man above him.

For a moment there was resentment clearly visible within the noble's obsidian eyes as they locked with their chocolate counterparts, though it had disappeared the moment hand resumed its course along the heated flesh between his legs.

"Tell me what you want." the voice came out but a husky whisper barely inches from his ear and in the next moment Byakuya's lips were captured in a sweet deep kiss and it made his face flush deeper, eyes haze once more, fair skin of his all but naked form twinkling with sweat - he looked like an angel fallen from the sky.

His hands crept up around his lover's neck, stealing another passionate moment of eloquent strokes of their tongues as the first one broke to allow them both to catch a breath. "I want you to make love to me," he breathed into his lips. "Renji."

Renji awoke with a start, straightening up so quickly his wounds felt like opening again. His breathing was heavy and tanned skin sprinkled with sweat. What was that just now? He was dreaming... about...

His hand darted up to cover his face. He could feel the taste of Byakuya's lips, the touch of his hands and the burning of his skin. An image of smooth pale body remained dancing before his eyes and he couldn't shake if off. No, he didn't! He couldn't! Not like that! It wasn't even real! Since when would his captain say something like: "I want you to make love to me."? Ichigo would sooner start dating Ishida.

**/You know, that doesn't sound like a bad idea either!/**

The sound of that voice made Renji blink and instinctively look around. It took him few seconds to realize it was coming from within his own mind.

_YOU! The hell d'you think you're doin'?_

Renji got up and strode to a mirror hanging on the opposite wall of his room here in Kuchiki manor, where he's been recovering for the past few days. A handsome face that was and wasn't his looked back at him, golden eyes reflecting a smirk on the guardian's lips. He ran a hand through a long, blond mane with deliberate laziness and winked.

**/Well you enjoyed it, didn't you? Although I was just starting to warm up. If you hadn't woken up.../**

_Like hell I enjoyed it! You violated my dreams, you harpy!_

Renji could hear himself yelling, but no sound came out of his mouth.

**/Tengu, you ignorant Pineapple, I'm a Tengu! Te-n-gu!/**

The guardian pursed his lips, making a wounded face.

**/And I haven't violated anything. I only used what was already in those kinky fantasies of yours./**

Renji's face turned the exact shade of red as his hair as he followed the guardian's gaze, hands immediately darting to hide a treacherous bulge in his kimono.

**/Don't bother, just do your thing and be done with it./**

The Tengu chuckled.

_SHADDUP! I'm not gonna ‚do my thing' or any other insipidity you might think of! I'm takin' a walk!_

**/Well, good luck with that, honey!/ **

Yet another set of chuckles followed Renji as he turned away from the mirror and walked out, taking long strides through the manor gardens and into the maze of alleys of Seireitei lit with torches lining the reishi made walls, ignoring long strands of crimson falling over his shoulders and back as well as the slight discomfort in his crotch and letting his legs carry him wherever they want to, while his thoughts wandered off into another realm.

He lied. Lied to himself and to his Tengu and the yōkai knew it. Though he had no right to invade Renji's dreams like that, fantasies like the one he had been having just now really were being kept hidden deep within the shinigami's mind for a long time. And Renji was aware of the reasons behind his guardian's constant interventions of his private life. There was almost no time left to act now, he realized it the moment he took Zabimaru into his hands and felt only cold handle of an ordinary sword. Since Inuzuri, Renji's zanpakutou hasn't come out and it frightened him. He remembered now what had happened on that day. It was not the strength of the opponents he had to face but a betrayal as his own men turned against one another and stabbed him in the back. He died in there and when a shinigami dies, his zanpakutou disappears. The fact that Zabimaru had not come back could only mean that when this is all over the Tengu leaves his body and he will die again, this time for good. And the guardian only wanted him to be honest with himself and face his feelings for the first and last time in his life. But Renji wasn't sure if he could do it. Excluding the fact that they were both men, Byakuya was someone Renji could look up to, someone beyond his reach as long as he remembered no matter how strong he became since the first day they met. To touch him would mean placing himself as an equal and that was unthinkable however he tried to look at it. Besides, what answer could he possibly receive should he attempt to convey his feelings into words? At best none at all, at worst his life would be ruined within seconds. And he couldn't risk it. Not even when he was about to die.

Before he knew it, Renji had found himself walking along a familiar path to 6th Division's barracks. He remembered Ichigo and the others should be somewhere around and it couldn't hurt to seek out a bit of company to help him get rid of these depressing thoughts. What was his surprise, however, when the first people his eyes fell upon as he entered the Division's grounds were the most improbable couple he could run across. Inoue Orihime, laughing, balancing on the edge of a small pond covered with water-lilies and sakura blossoms carried around by a chilly night breeze and the one supporting her when she almost fell into the water being none other than Ulquiorra Schiffer, pure white skin and clothes illuminant in the moonlight, making him appear somewhat eerie.

Rooted to the spot Renji stared at the two of them for what might have been hours, eyes wide, mouth slightly opened, torn between the instinct to save the girl and knowledge that Ichigo or any of his friends would never allow them to be together if the arrancar intended to harm her - though even if he did, he wouldn't live to tell the tale. And as he watched the happy smile on Orihime's face and the look the Espada gave her each time their eyes met, he knew that whomever Ulquiorra might have been, he would never let her come to harm, because Renji knew that expression very well, for he had seen it every time Kuchiki Byakuya looked at Rukia.

As silently as possible as to not draw attention to his presence, he jumped over a railing, leaving the two to their midnight stroll and entered the somber barracks. It felt odd and somehow lonely with almost nobody left to live here and Renji began wondering if it was really a good idea to come here in the middle of a night, but the one thing he dreaded now was to be alone. Even though there is an over talkative Tengu inside your head, it's just not the same as actually spending time with other people. He scuffled through a long dark corridor and up a set of stairs to the first floor. From above he glimpsed a flash of orange light - no doubt from Inoue's Shun Shun Rikka. Since there were no yells or cries of pain he dismissed it with only a second hesitation and continued along the corner, listening to any sound indicating as to where Ichigo might be.

It didn't take too long for an unmistakable sound of yelling to reach Renji's ears. He followed it with a smirk. The orange-hair teen just couldn't do without shouting for even a single day. What idiot was making fun of him this time? But before he could speculate over the matter, Renji came close enough to listen in on the conversation and Ichigo's voice carried to him, though a little bit muffled.

"Like hell I'm gonna wait! I've been waiting for ages, listening to your excuses. I've had enough!"

"Hush, Kurosaki! You're going to wake everyone up! Don't forget we are—" Renji never found out what or where they were, because the rest of the sentence was silenced with a guttural growl a bang and a muffled sound of struggle.

The red-head broke to a run, bursting into the room barely a single second later looking around wildly for any sign of enemy intrusion.

"Ichigo! What the—„ and his brain momentarily shut down as his eyes fell upon two figures - one pinned to a wall by the window with his shirt half-stripped and the other one grabbing his wrists, knee thrust between long legs, free hand crawling up smooth pale skin of the other's heaving chest. Their lips crushing together in an unmistakable fashion.

Both of them jerked and looked over at the sound of door opening and for a few seconds that stretched like ages there was silence. Nobody moved, only three pairs of eyes tried to figure out what the hell was going on. And as the moment passed, the two lovers jumped from each other guiltily, everyone glad it was too dark to see the deep rosy blush creeping up their cheeks.

Fingers reached up to push square glasses a little bit higher while bronze eyes gleamed with yellow and dilated.

**/Now this is fate, my dear Pineapple! It just has to mean something, don't you think?/**

Tengu's laughter, echoing through his head so that it felt like it was about to split open finally kicked Renji's brain back online. He couldn't believe it. He must be delusional. For a moment he considered pinching himself to wake up from this ludicrous dream, however, had it really been a dream, his guardian wouldn't be laughing his ass off. And the longer he watched the two boys shuffling nervously, everything seemed possible to the 6th Division Vice-Captain. Even Kuchiki Byakuya begging for sex appeared much more realistic now, that that there could be no mistake that Kurosaki Ichigo just attempted to ravish Ishida Uryuu who didn't seem to mind in the slightest.

"Shit..." the simple word uttered in a matter-of-fact voice caused Ichigo a murderous look from the Quincy as he gathered up the rest of his dignity and strode off.

"Oi! Ishida, wait—gah!" but it was no use and Kurosaki only hung his shoulders and ran his hand through orange spikes, seemingly ignoring Renji still standing in the doorway paralyzed with shock, moving a bit only to allow the archer to slip past. „He's gonna kill me tomorrow." he mumbled distractedly before bronze eyes finally found chocolate ones of the crimson-haired shinigami and a surge of reiatsu flared between them as Kurosaki rounded on him. "What the fuck'd ya do that for, Renji?"

The sentence seemed to have brought the Vice-Captain to his senses and -ignoring the Tengu cackling manically in his head- he managed to find his voice again with the intention to not let himself be harassed like that.

"The hell're you yellin' at me for?" he sputtered, tattooed brows knitted in a scowl to match the teenager's and stood his ground as Ichigo advanced, his reiatsu increasing in density. "'S your own damn fault for snogging people in public!"

"There was nobody else here, 'till you barged in as if your ass was on fire!" shouted Ichigo back.

"That's not the case!" Renji's fists clenched around the hem of the boy's shihakusho. „That creepy emo arrancar with Inoue-san I can live with," he pointed outside into the garden. "But what the fuck are you slitherin' along Ishida for? Have ya all gone nuts?" he felt like the world had gone all wrong while he was being treated for his injuries, while the Guardian still couldn't stop laughing, making Renji's headache worse by the minute.

Ichigo's hands grabbed the red-head's shihakusho as well so that it looked like the two were going to fight, eyes narrowed and retort forming on his tongue that had never come out, for the lieutenant swayed slightly at that moment and if it wasn't for Kurosaki's quick reaction he would have fallen to the ground.

The Tengu had stopped laughing immediately as the world whirled and blurred around Renji and he could hear Ichigo calling his name as if from a great distance. He felt himself being pulled into nothingness, suddenly aware of the miracle his spiritual body had been all along to allow him to breathe and walk and live and knew he did not have the strength to resist it. But he couldn't die. Not yet! Not like this! There wasn't even any pain left for him to feel... and the Guardian was supposed to keep him alive!

_Rukia..._ he thought desperately, wishing his last thoughts to reach his dearest old friend, but there was somebody else now creeping into his mind as it was slipping away from him and he couldn't shake the image.

_Taichou... _no, that wasn't quite right either. Renji wanted to apologize for his failures as he felt the last remnants of consciousness leaving him and strong hands supporting his body suddenly so heavy he couldn't move a finger even if he wanted to. _Byakuya... I'm sorry._

And Abarai Renji was swallowed by gawking darkness and knew nothing anymore.

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**Notes:**

**Tengu**** – creatures from Japanese folklore depicted with humanoid and avian features, sometimes worshipped as lesser gods**

**Yōkai ****– term for all the different kinds of ghosts and creatures from Japanese mythology either good or evil**


	6. Chapter 6

**Konnichiwa, minna-san! :) I'm back and Devil's Snare comes with me... this time it took very very long to write this, because my lack of imagination refuses to go away Y_Y And there are still more projects to work on. And I need to travel a lot these days. And Christmas coming up as well. Cooking and stuff.**

**Anyway, here goes the sixth chapter at long last. I was waiting for my beta Evil-Peach to re-read it, but it seems everybody's on vacation, so there might again be grammatical mistakes as usual... please ignore them. **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

The air still chilled, even thought the last remnants of night had long since retreated before the first cones of daylight tentatively reaching over the pink and violet tinted horizon. Gust of freezing wind rose up to wash over two lone figures standing at the very edge of Seireitei, where its neat reishi walls and ground blended with shabby houses and well-trodden main street of the Junrinan district of West Rukongai. The place was deserted as well, for none of its inhabitants had neither the desire to wake up just barely after the sunrise nor the wish to meddle in Gotei 13's affairs. And perhaps even less so since the news of the massacre of Inuzuri reached far and wide to almost every corner of Soul Society.

Looking up at the pale-blue sky, Abarai Renji yawned, unable to supress it any longer and it cost him a reproachful glance of obsidian eyes which made him apologize automatically and mind his own bussiness again, oblivious to Kuchiki Byakuya still watching him closely from the corner of his eye.

Renji crouched down, taking out his now Zabimaru-less zanpakuto and began to draw circles in the dusty road beneath his feet, not really paying attention to what he was doing. He was bored and worried and scared like hell and the events of last night kept whirling inside his head as he attempted to make some sense of it all. His Tengu was keeping largely to himself since Renji had come to about half an hour after he collapsed in Ichigo's room to find himself facing Unohana Retsu, whom the orange-haired teen had the brilliant idea to call over to take a look at him without making a fuss for all of Seiretei to know. The 4th Division Captain's diagnosis was overexertion, thought she herself did not look quite as convinced of the truthfulness of her words as Renji would like her to, for he couldn't explain it either. And the Tengu claimed to have no idea what happened either, which made Renji even more uneasy, though he decided to keep his suspicions to himself. It wouldn't do to pass out again while they were investigating Inuzuri during the preparations for the Ritual of Banishment. And to start arguing with the Tengu would surely mean another overexertion Unohana-taichou made a point of forbidding with one of her rare falsely kind smiles that carried a promise of imminent danger.

The red-head shivered imperceptibly as he recalled the clearly defined threat sneaking into every syllable of the otherwise kind Captain's voice that so reminded him of Byakuya at that moment and sighed, dragging the tip of his sword over the dusty ground. The blade glimmered in a single golden ray falling upon it and for a moment Renji thought he could feel Zabimaru brushing against the back of his mind and paused to reach back for it. The sensation dissapeared the moment he heard footsteps approaching and stood up, looking at the new arrival. It was Ichigo and his gang.

A grin spread on Renji's face as he saw the sour expression on the orange-haired teen's face along with large bags under his bloodshot eyes. It didn't take a genius to link his current mood to the way Ishida Uryuu was keeping his distance, ignoring his lover and seemingly deep in conversation with Inoue Orihime and Arisawa Tatsuki, who was being wary and anxious now that she got at least a little used to this place as if she anticipated to be attacked at any moment from any direction. Perhaps it was due to spending too much time with the 6th Espada, whom had taken a great interest in bickering with her as much as possible only for the fun of taunting her and provoking Ichigo to do something stupid. He nearly did too once, along with Arisawa herself. The others had a hard time separating the three untill Ulquiorra came along and a single look of his eyes made them cease all hostilities immediately. Grimmjow did so with a snort as to not seem intimidated by the 4th Espada.

"Oi, Ichigo!" Renji called, smirking at the obviously exhausted teen. "What's with that face? Want me to call Zaraki-taichou? 'M sure few rounds around Seireitei'd wake you up."

The orange-haired Shinigami narrowed his eyes in response, his lips curling in a wry smile. "I'll pass, thanks. You need the exercise more than I do. Passing out on me like that yesterday, I thought the floor was gonna crack under the weight."

The retort sounded even more lame spoken aloud and Ichigo knew it, he just couldn't think of anything better at the time, memories of trying to make it up to Ishida for the rest of the night and failing miserably still fresh in his tired mind. He didn't feel like joking. Or walking. Or talking. Or doing anything else for that matter. But his small taunt still managed to produce at least some of the desired effect as an angry red vein pulsed on Renji's temple and the Vice-Captain ruffled up, striding towards the high-schooler, eyes shooting daggers.

"Temae!" he grabbed the boy by the hem of his shihakusho.

Ichigo did the same, obviously insulted and a little bit glad to have somebody to vent off the steam on right now. "What? Wanna hit me?"

Renji didn't. Instead a feral grin split his tattoed face and he leaned closer to the boy, lowering his voice to a whisper. "How 'bout I rather tell 'em 'bout last night, berry-chan? 'M sure Rukia's never gonna let you live it down!"

Ichigo scoffed, defiance etched into his bronze gaze as it locked with the chocolate one. "Go ahead, pineapple-head, I couldn't care less."

Flicker of dense reiatsu washing over him and an unmistakable sound of indignant coughing, however, was indication enough for the teen to realize that Ishida Uryuu _did_ care. His pride as a Quincy would never be able to survive the humiliation of being constantly bothered by _more_ Shinigami for already sharing his bed with one. It's been a nightmare to just persuade the archer to continue their relationship when Inoue found out about them. Of course, that was just an accident. She would never have known if it wasn't for her forgetfulness that made her look for the Quincy after school one day, finding him on the roof in a deep and completely wordless conversation with Kurosaki Ichigo involving lips, tongues and nimble fingers.

Ichigo blushed violently as he recalled the moment Ishida realized she was there. His eyes shot to his lover, whose glasses shone opaque as he pushed them up his nose with two slim fingers.

"My my, whatta lively mornin'." Ichimaru Gin strolled lazily over, boney hands thrust in his long sleeves, face-splitting grin firmly in place as usual and the hilt of Shinsou peeking from beneath the folds of his white haori. "Ain'tcha gonna teach yer fuku-taichou how ta behave properly, Kuchiki-taichou?"

Byakuya, for the first time since the two started arguing, looked at them as if he didn't notice what was going on untill now, eyes heavy-lidded, pale mien expressionless to rival even that of Ulquiorra Schiffer who stood serenely next to Orihime with his fingers absently stroking Murciélago, while Grimmjow -also trailing behind the former 3rd Division Captain- kept his distance, leering at Arisawa provocatively, Pantera dangling at his side.

"Quit it, Ichimaru. Nobody's interested in your smart comments." It was Hitsugaya Toushiro, who spoke, following the Hueco Mundo delegation to keep an eye on them. Of course _not _only because nobody else wanted to.

"Oya! Unfriendly like tha' so early in the mornin'." Ichimaru grinned at the white-haired Captain whose aquamarine eyes sparkled with loathing. "What could lil' ol' me do ta earn such hostility, 10th Division Taichou-han?"

Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed dangerously. However Ichimaru Gin already lost interest in provoking the small Captain the moment a tall blond woman flash-stepped to his side, bowing her head. She didn't seem to notice the former 3rd Division Captain, nor his two companions as she leaned close to her superior, whispering into his ear. Hitsugaya noded curtly and his quarrel with Ichimaru was forgotten. He adressed the rest of their group whose attention turned to him immediately and without questions.

"Time to go. The others will meet us there." he said only and assumed the front line, followed by Kuchiki Byakuya with Renji once again by his side.

One after the other they vanished in shunpo the moment they crossed the boundary between Seireitei and Junrinan, Matsumoto Rangiku looking as if she wanted to talk to her silver-haired traitor of a childhood friend before she changed her mind, joining her Captain. Ichimaru's grin dissapeared from his fox-like face for a split second, coming back before anyone could notice and he too was gone, Ulquiorra and Grimmjow at his heels, Ichigo and Ishida taking Inoue and Arisawa with them, for the two girls couldn't use any kind of flash-step.

o*O*o

The sun was high and the skies gradually darkened with threatening storm, hiding the blazing orb as the group of eleven people apperead seemingly out of nowhere, in the middle of a deserted dusty road leading along a line of shrivelled, long dead trees. Their leafless branches sticking out of strangely distorted tree trunks as if they were once people turned into solid grey bark as they prayed or perhaps cried out in agony to the gods in heavens to hear them for one last time. Dust rose up carried by the wind gushing through the Shinigami ranks and bearing an indistinct essence of foreboding that brought chill to their spine and made the hair on their necks stand up.

"Where are we?" Ichigo spoke first, looking around with apprehension. The road under their feet slithered across a rocky plain with nothing in sight, even the occasional clusters of grass spreading over the barren land were yellowed and withered. No sign whatsoever of this place ever being inhabited.

"There're 80 Rukongai Districts, from the most wealthy borderin' with Seireitei, to the most frowzy. Inuzuri is 78th, so you can imagine how it must've looked like." Renji's voice was tinted with bitterness and regret as he said it as a way of explanation.

"However the protection of surrounding districts was necessery to prevent Mikaboshi's influence from spreading rapidly, especially to Kusajishi and Zaraki, which are unfortunately the most vulnerable due to the people's living conditions." Byakuya took the iniciative, walking slowly forward before coming to a halt as if there was an invisible wall preventing him from going further. "Which means the Kidou Corps errected a powerful barrier around a significantly large area round Inuzuri District preventing anything from getting in or out." the noble raised his hands and where his slender fingers touched the air, circles appeared as if he threw a stone in the water.

Hitsugaya imitated his actions and under the two Captains' silent incantations an archway opened up to admit them. They stepped aside, letting the gawking rest of the group through. The only one unaffected by this magical display being Ulquiorra, whose facial expression never changed and Ichimaru, who looked as if this was only natural. The archway closed behind them the moment they were all on the other side, the place where it had vanished shining bright yellow for only a few seconds.

Immediately the dread they have all been feeling as they approached Inuzuri strenghtened to a point where it resembled a very dense mass of spiritual pressure crushing down on them, preventing their limbs from moving. Even breathing became unnaturaly difficult. Inoue's knees buckled under the pressure, Matsumoto and Ishida panted heavily, Ichigo's fingers wrapped around Zangetsu so that his knuckles had gone white. Even Ulquiorra's otherwise analiticaly calm green eyes darkened and dilated slightly, while the grin on Ichimaru Gin's lips seemed not as face-splitting as usual.

"The effect of the change in pressure will wear off soon." Hitsugaya blinked a few times, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

Byakuya wriggled his scarf, shooting a glance at Renji who -surprisingly enough- seemed totally unaffected. As did the other Guardians.

"What the fuck're ya jabberin' about? Don't feel a shit." Grimmjow growled, frowning a bit precariously at Ichigo, whose face turned an interesting shade of marble as he tried to get used to the thick atmosphere surrounding them.

"Same here." said Renji, apparently confused as well. Arisawa only scowled, one arm thrown over Inoue's shoulders, the other holding her hand in place around Tatsuki's own neck as she tried to keep her friend from collapsing.

"Apparently, your Guardians serve as a shield from Mikaboshi's influence. Most intriguing. I do hope I will get to gather more detailed informations from a dissection should any of you die here."

The voice came unexpected and very much familiar to almost all of them and there were thoughts of dissapointment as all heads turned to the newcomer. Especially in the case of the three Guardians.

Kurotsuchi Mayuri was walking towards them, gracefuly, half-clenching and unclenching his hands in the general direction of the group slowly regaining their composure. Orange eyes sweeping each of their faces and his yellowish grin widened as they fell upon the two Espada whom he had aparently found almost as interesting as the Guardians themselves. He seemed to ignore Ishida, however, as the archer's slightly sick expression changed into one of utter disgust. Apparently he still hasn't forgotten the circumstances of neither of their previous meetings.

"Like hell I'm gonna kick the bucket for you to do some weird shit to me!" Grimmjow snapped sharply, blue brows now knitted together to form a line over his eyes. Even though he didn't know half about Mayuri that the Shinigami did, there was a slightly Szayelish air around him that made the arrancar uneasy, to say the very least. "And who're you anyway? Grantz's underrated freak of a cousin?"

Kurotsuchi's gaze ran hungrily along the 6th Espada's body up and down few times as if he was trying to strip him there and then and Grimmjow jerked slightly under the scrutiny as a cold net of foreboding coiled around his spine.

"I see no reason to clog your brain with more unnecessary information, Grimmjow Jeagerjaques. You see, most specimens are sufficient even if they are already dead. You on the other hand would make a very good addition to my collection alive. So much more to explore that way." yellowish teeth bared in the widest smile yet and this time it was Ichigo's turn to grin as he saw Grimmjow's face pale. Apparently he had had his fair share of encounters with mad scientists as well and was not keen on repeating any of them any time soon.

It took a few more minutes and Hitsugaya busting in to prevent a fight or two that Kurotsuchi seemed way too insistent on starting, especially with Ishida, whose presence he seemed to have finaly realized and properly disallowed for having already done his lot on him and thus considering the Quincy of no further interest, to get them underway, where the 12th Division Captain familiarized all of them with the current situation, which was being taken care of even at this very moment by yet another Captain dispatched to make the scientist's work smooth and easy without interruptions and whom they had the pleasure of meeting only about ten minutes later as they reached the outskirts of Inuzuri itself. Only that right now it much more resembled randomly gathered up piles of what could possibly be an attempt of a five-year old to make enough wood-coal to last for at least a decade.

Renji's eyes widened as he saw it and he was glad Rukia wasn't here. Though their memories of this place were not exactly happy and they've long since gone to join the Gotei 13, he still found himself familiar with what they had once called home. He could clearly see before his eyes how Inuzuri looked like when they were kids, playing pranks to steal water and sometimes even food for themselves and their friends and being chased by the vendors brandishing crudely made clubs as they were running for their very lives through filthy dark alleyways, forming a somehow passable way through the warren that was the 78th Rukongai District. Now, however, the place had virtually been burned to the ground. No corpses though, which seemed slightly odd, only charred remains of shabby hovels and shops, some still smoking and suddenly he remembered yet another thing from the day he had lost most of his division here during his investigation. Inferno. Fiery hell consuming Inuzuri even as they arrived, almost as if someone had unleashed Ryūjin Jakka to erase all evidence of life ever flourishing in these parts of Soul Society. He could hear the screaming of his men as they dissapeared within it one after the other only to come back, changed and twisted to turn against those who still remained, including Abarai himself. And the screaming grew louder and Renji wasn't even aware of his knees giving way and his hands covering his ears to shut it all out and Ichigo's voice calling after him and Byakuya's eyes widening as he saw his lieutenant collapse, though he wouldn't move from the spot untill it would be absolutely necessary and then an explosion shook the whole place and they all jumped back or covered their faces as a crowd of humanoid creatures loomed out of the newly formed cloud of smoke only to be cut mid-step, their bodies falling to the ground in a river of blood, severed in half before they all turned to ash carried away by the wind. And maniacal laughter followed them and everybody seemed to have recognized its owner even before he jumped into sight to finish those that managed to escape his first attack, little pink-haired girl cheering him on as she dangled from one of his broad shoulders.

"No use! No use!" he yelled and swung his blade once, twice, three times untill all his oponents fell to the ground and scattered.

He snorted loudly as he looked around and saw nobody else to fight. "All trash." he said throwing his sword over his unoccupied shoulder and walking towards the group watching the whole scene from afar. "Not worth my time. Got somethin' more interesting there, Kurotsuchi?" he spotted the others and his good eye lingered on Grimmjow, whom he seemed to consider carefully, then Ulquiorra, the Espada returning his gaze with obvious unconcern and finally settling on Ichigo at which point his face split into a wide grin and bells perched on top of each black spike forming his echinus-shaped haircut jingled as he moved.

"Huh? Ain't it Ichigo!" he purred like a cat about to jump at a cornered mouse and his eye gleamed dangerously.

"Ichi! Ohayou!" Yachiru's head popped out, her face shining with happiness and dissapeared in shunpo, appearing almost immediately perched on Ichigo's shoulder before leaping into the air and neatly landing next to Byakuya, who automatically reached into his sleeves and before she could utter a single word shoved a manju into her mouth.

She began to munch on it happily, completely ignoring Ichigo's gulping protests as he was pushed to run for the hills with the 11th Division Captain at his heals, laughing madly, brandishing his sword and totally ignoring the orange-head yelling at him about the reason they all came here for and utter disregard for the safety of others, especialy Renji.

However the red-head was already standing up, breathing a little heavily as Grimmjow and Ulquiorra watched the two Shinigami running about, Sexta about to roll over in fits of laughter, Cuatro with mild curiosity shining in his emerald eyes. The rest -obvioulsly used to such behaviour- didn't even bother to sigh in exasperation.

No surprise that Byakuya was the first to notice the sudden change in Renji's posture as well as his facial expression, now austere and somehow unearthly. Black eyes narrowed with apprehension, hand reached for Senbonzakura's handle.

"There is no need to get suspicious, Kuchiki-san." Renji's tatooed hands shot up in a calming gesture and even if it wasn't for his odd way of adressing Byakuya, there could be no mistake that this was not Abarai Renji. One of chocolate eyes, usually streaked with crimson now gleamed pure gold and the ponytail on the back of the Vice-Captain's head came undone, crimson hair a shade lighter and much longer, spilling like a liquid fire over his shoulders and back. "I am sorry for this sudden unannounced intrusion, however Renji seems to be... unavailable right now. I had to take over." came out of the red-head's mouth, however it was not in his own deep growl of a voice. Or not entirely.

Byakuya's hand stilled on his sword as he put two and two together, understanding that what he was looking at was, in fact, Renji's Guardian.

"You should've taken someone more _alive_. Told ya he wouldn't last long." this time it was Grimmjow who came forward, hands thrust in his pockets, eyes the color of forget-me-not blue now dark, feral grin spread across his face, electric blue hair formed strangely into a pair of curved hornes curling around the espada's ears. Second Guardian had resurficed.

The Tengu folded Renji's hands on his chest and pursed his lips in such a girlish way Byakuya hoped he would never have to see this kind of expression on his Vice-Captain's face ever again. Thought it seemed to have attracted the attention of the rest of the group, who apparently finally noticed something going on.

Yachiru wolfed down the rest of her sweet dumpling and squeeked, jumping at Renji, tugging at his long hair. "Monkey-face turned into girl! Yaaay!"

The Tengu's face contorted with rage at her statement. "Who're you calling monkey-face, you little bubblegum brat!" he waved his hands to shake her off, however Yachiru was too quick for him, so that after a few spins and turns which made him feel slightly nauseous, he ended up sprawled on the dusty ground, spitting out dirt and mud.

Grimmjow -or more likely the Oni now occupying the Espada's body- who couldn't take it any longer, gave up and bent over laughing his head off. It didn't help to raise the Tengu's spirits in the slightest.

"Ssssstop bickering you usssselessss freakssss!" another voice joined the quarrel that had broke out between the two Guardians under Kusajishi Yachiru's happy cheering and all heads turned to look at Arisawa Tatsuki, prowling towards her two companions, shooting daggers at them.

"Tatsuki-chan...?" Inoue's voice trailed off as her hand automatically reached for her friend, who didn't pay the slightest attention to it.

It didn't take long to spot the subtle changes marking the manifestation of the third Guardian. Tatsuki's slythering movement, the whites of her eyes inked with black, pupils bright gold just like Ichigo's when he calls forth his inner hollow. Instead of a white mask, however, only markings began appearing on the girl's pale skin, forming a pattern clearly recognizable as that of a cobra.

She smacked Renji and Grimmjow over the head, hard, before turning to see all eyes upon her. Some interested -expecialy Kurotsuchi's- some worried and some rather unsure of what to do or think.

"And what're you all ssssstaring at? We've got job to do, remember?" she snapped at them and her tongue shot out of her mouth, quickly swished through the air and dissapeared again as she straightened up, suddenly alerted.

Soon everybody knew why that was, for the very ground under their feet shook violently so that it made even Kenpachi and Ichigo -who had somehow ended up on the ground infront of one of the ruined houses crumbling around them, covering his face- pause and look around. They needen't have bothered. The roar that cut through the air couldn't be mistaken for anything else.

"Hollow." Hitsugaya uttered through gritted teeth and in a blink of an eye he drew Hyourinmaru and prepared for a fight. As had all the Shinigami.

And sure enough, not a single breath later a giant figure rose above the remnants of the main street of Inuzuri and it was something they expected, though hoped they wouldn't see here.

Another ear-splitting roar pierced the silence that fell between them at the sight of the giant creature wrapped in what resembled a black cloak, long white fingers reaching out of its sleeves and marble oval mask of a head with two small, perfectly round holes for eyes, long pointy perforated nose and two rows of skull-like teeth now opening again in a familiar fashion.

However the Gillian's Cero never reached its target, whomever it might have been.

"Ikorose, Shinsou." came out two simple words and the Menos roared for the last time as it was sliced in half by Ichimaru's shikai, anyone none the wiser when it had extracted and shrinked back again.

The former 3rd Division Captain shoved his hands back in his sleeves, grin still spread over his fox-like pale face.

"Taichou." this time it was Matsumoto and the sound of her voice as well as her hand resting on his shoulder made Hitsugaya look away from Ichimaru Gin's slitted eyes, though he immediately wished he hadn't.

How naïve can one get to think there would be only a single enemy? The little Captain gave up thinking about such things immediately, for they were now surrounded with Gillians and all the gigantic hollows were opening their mouths, gathering brilliantly red traces of reiatsu for their next attack.

"What the hell are _those_ freaks doing here?" Ichigo's voice came out right next to Hitsugaya's ear and mad laughter that followed it could only mean Kenpachi already charging at the closest hollow, now stepping over what had once been a shop.

"Hollows are Mikaboshi's creations, Kurosaki Ichigo. Of course he would send them to protect himself." Ulquiorra answered instead, walking calmly forward, eyes set on the Menos infront of him. "Trash." he murmured and outstretched his hand as a cone of red energy shot from its mouth and he negated it with his own Cero, sending another blast back, succesfully dispersing his opponent.

"Says another hollow." Ichigo retorted dryly. "Should we expect you to go berserk any time soon?"

"Fortunately for you such a thing is highly unlikely." the Espada said in a calm and utterly disconcerned manner, his green eyes meeting for a split second with bronze ones. "Our physiology has been altered by the Hogyoku to such an extend we no longer fall under Mikaboshi's influence."

"And how the hell do you know that?" Ichigo snapped, irritated for not recieving a proper explanation. Not that he particularly minded anyway. Listening to crap like that never ranked among his favourite pass-times. Though lately it had become a kind of daily routine with all this shit going on all the time.

"Surely not by being ignorant." Ulquiorra said with a simple finality and moved on to dispatch another Gillian, replacing the one he destroyed before, leaving Ichigo muttering angrily under his breath, while he too flash-stepped in to join the fight.

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**Please review, it's always nice to read what you think :) And merry Chistmas =3**

**Notes: **

**Temae - a scornful reflexive pronoun; though it can mean both "me" and "you" ... usualy it's translated as "You little..."**

**Ohayou - Good morning**

**Manju - sweet dupling (the one Byakuya always hides in his sleeves!)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Greetings!**

**It's been a while since the last chapter of Devil's Snare and I apologize... I got wrapped in many things at once and wanted to really make this the best, which couldn't be done half-hartedly. This is a short chapter and the next will be the last one, I decided to make it two because one would be too long I suppose... and I wish to make the ending as japanese-RPG-like as possible, so be sure to look forward to some plot twists and surprises :)**

**Now then, let's get back to business ;)**

* * *

"Santen Kesshun!" the Shun Shun Rikka obeyed gladly their master's command, forming a brightly glowing shield over Kurosaki Ichigo's back, blocking yet another Gillian's cero before it dispersed under its force.

The Shinigami Representative turned, feeling a gust of wind running through his orange spiky hair as soon as another one of the giant hollows disappeared, cut in half by his Getsuga Tenshō.

"Thanks, Inoue!" he called with a smile and jumped high into the air to ensure another enemy will recieve the same treatment.

She beamed back at him, thought he couldn't see it and it was only a split second before she realized how foolish she were to do so. She turned around just in time to see two Gillans together with at least half a dozen of those humanoid creatures they saw earlier charging at her and through the glamour of battle nobody else seemed to notice. She made a few steps back, calling to Tsubaki, though she knew it was pointless. When it came to defense and healing, she felt her powers growing, but in combat she was still useless no matter how hard she tried. Inoue prepared herself...

... And then many things happened at once.

The girl's eyes dilated, Tsubaki shot forth to deliver a blow to her enemies and she recognized those shambling creatures as Shinigami as well as the denizens of Inuzuri, suddenly understanding why weren't there any corpses here. They were all turned into mindless pawns directed by Mikaboshi's will. And with the realization came hesitation as well. Could she perhaps do something to save them? But before she could ponder that idea a shadow fell upon them and she heard Ichigo's voice calling her name and felt herself being lifted high into the air, while enemies below were scattered to pieces.

With a gasp of surprise, Inoue looked up to see the ever expressionless face of Ulquiorra Schiffer, large black wings of his resurrección form compensating with the flow of the wind to keep them both airborne. He did not say or do anything, looking around until they finally descended a little further from the centre of the battle where he considered it safe. Emerald eyes zeroed in on round grey orbs and Inoue felt her face flush with embarrassment.

"Thank you." she whispered, evading his gaze.

"Do not get in our way, woman." Ulquiorra said only before taking off and leaving her standing alone among the rubble that could have once been a shop or a house.

Turning his head a few times to ensure she was safe, he finally relaxed, taking down the nearest cluster of enemies that could possibly endanger her with a single strike. They were to search for a dimensional rift to Mikaboshi's prison, though as far as he analyzed the situation, they were getting nowhere near achieving their goal. No matter how much of this pitiful trash they killed, still more kept coming and there was no sign of any distortions that would mark the opening portal

And the Cuatro was not the only one getting tired of the never-ending fighting. Kenpachi stopped his usual deranged laughter while he chased after the attacking creatures, swinging his sword now only half-heartedly and not forgetting to complain about lack of proper challenge, which made Ichigo try to make himself as invisible for the 11th Division Captain as possible while slicing Gillians and ghouls -as Kurotsuchi called them- as he went, hollow mask firmly in place.

Something bright blue crossed his path, missing a few vital organs by inches and as he jumped to avoid the evident ambush, he saw the quincy arrows hit their appointed targets shambling only few feet away towards him. Ishida already turned his attention elsewhere when Ichigo looked at him and the Shinigami Representative sighed heavily, making a mental note to avoid getting too close to his lover as well.

The rest of them apparently faced the same problem. Even though they were using as little reiatsu as possible, with no end of this slaughter in sight most of them could still feel it draining slowly from their bodies and it was only a matter of time before the spiritual pressure bearing down on them -even though they already got somehow used to it- will surely take its toll.

Dust and mud swirled from the ground, clouding their vision. The roars of hollows deafened them and irritation caused the thick atmosphere to charge even more. Nobody noticed a small, almost invisible crack pulsing only inches from Inoue Orihime's right shoulder. She didn't either until her eyes fell upon it as she looked around, uncertain feeling of being watched making her uneasy. She reached out tentatively with her hand to examine it, brows furrowing with concentration.

Seconds later a deafening scream drowned out even the glamour of battle raging fiercely throughout the whole place and all heads turned to where it had come from to see the orange-haired girl fall to the ground limply, the disruption now sparkling with energy it must have drained out of her.

"Inoue!" it was Ichigo's voice that carried through the racket, though Ulquiorra reached the girl's unmoving form first as if he kept close to her on purpose this whole time, examining her closely.

Having finally found what they were looking for since entering Inuzuri, the group of Shinigami together with humans and Espada alike were able to successfully regroup, making their way to the crackling distortion with renewed enthusiasm; keeping the slightly thinning numbers of enemies at bay with deadly precision.

Senbonzakura's pink petals wrapped around the nearest mob, shredding everything to pieces; Quincy arrows dispatched those that managed to get away and a wall of ice surrounded them, holding the small army back to protect Inoue and for the three Guardians to finally do their job.

Ulquiorra lifted the girl into his arms extremely gently. "She is unconscious. The rift drained almost all of her reiatsu." he stated matter-of-factly, carrying her away while the others gathered around the expanding distortion. "I believe we should take her somewhere else for now."

Ichigo's eyes followed him, the teen looking as if he wanted nothing more than to tail the Cuatro Espada, but having his hands full with fending off yet _more_ of Mikaboshi's abominations closing in from opposite direction, he could only glimpse the two of them vanishing in sonido as the last of his opponents fell under the combined force of Getsuga Tenshou and swirling ashes of Matsumoto's Haineko. Uncertain and quite unsettling feeling nestled itself in his gut and the frown on his forehead deepened.

"Great, it's still pretty small, this shouldn't take long." Renji's musing severed the train of the Shinigami Representative's thoughts as the Tengu now in control of the red-head's body scrutinized the phenomenon in front of them.

"You keep those away if you please. After we seal it, they should disappear as well." the Tengu instructed, pointing towards Hitsugaya's ice wall being slowly but surely broken through. Tattooed brows furrowed in contemplation, crooked grin flickered over tanned face.

"But still..." he trailed off, shoving the thought away together with the mirth tugging at his lips and nodded to the other two Guardians who asumed their position, forming a precise triangle with the distortion in the centre.

And as they did so, the ground beneath their feet seemed to come to life. Dust and earth rose up to curl around their ankles, carried by nonexistent wind. Oni, Tengu and hollow as one offered their faces to the gust of wind surging through their clothes, Renji's fiery hair billowing as if turned into real flames as he tilted his head up, opening his arms in almost welcoming gesture. Grimmjow and Arisawa followed his example and the moment the tips of their fingers touched, the built up reiryoku burst out with such a force it threatened to blow the remaining Shinigami away like a mere sheets of paper.

They turned around as the thick wave of spiritual pressure washed over their backs, arms raised to protect them against its force. Wide-eyed they watched the three Guardians suspended in midair, their feet barely inches above the swirling ground, eyes closed and the whirlwind of energy they seemed to be giving out all being devoured by the crackling distortion in their centre. There was something different about them now and exactly what it was became clear once they descended back on the parched ground, one after the other, strange silvery aura eminating from all three of them.

Tengu occupying Renji's body was now holding a long staff with numerous metal rings dangling from the flower-shaped hoop forming its tip, the light enveloping his body clothing him in rippling embroidered garments woven from the very fabric of sunrays, majestic stormy-grey wings protruded from his back and he spread them as if ready to take off, tip of each feather smoothly darkening to inky-black. Grimmjow, taken over by his Oni Guardian changed as well - horns curling round his now slightly pointed ears had grown a little bigger and much more pronounced so that they no longer blended with his messy electric-blue hair, clawed hands gripping tightly the handle of Pantera and somewhere along the way he managed to get shirtless, thought white hakama still securely covered most of his lower body, showing no sign of the gaping hollow hole. Arisawa's appearance was the most inconspicuous, the only thing obviously different about her being a white mask with venomous fangs hiding away her face.

The Tengu thrust the end of his staff into the ground and let go. A crack appeared where it connected and slowly crawled to the centre if their formation, where it met with those made by the Oni and hollow creating a tear right underneath the crackling entrance to Mikaboshi's prison.

The Guardian's eyes slid closed, palms clasped in front of their chests, fingers intertwined and thumbs pressing against the index fingers raised and pressed together. "Rin. Pyō. Tō. Sha. Kai. Jin. Retsu. Zai. Zen." their voices blended together in a perfect harmony as they chanted the First Seal.

The aura weaved around their bodies slithered into the ground underneath their feet and through the three cracks in the dust until it met in the centre and raw spiritual energy bursted out, swallowing the dimensional gate in a blinding column of silver light reaching high into the now quickly darkening sky. There was a loud, warning rumbling of thunder that made their audience look up for a single moment to see it disappearing into the heavy grey clouds swirling around it.

Three pairs of equally silvery glowing eyes opened, fixing onto the scene to proceed with the Second Seal.

"On baishiraman taya sowaka." the Tengu's words floated from his lips as if it were a song, it seemed to reverberate through the charged air and solidify before their very eyes into a bright golden chain that coiled like a snake around the silver column. The three Guardians' hands moved to interlace in a slightly different fashion as he spoke again: "On isha naya in tara ya sowaka." and a second golden chain appeared, joining its predecessor.

Another quick slip of their fingers and this time the chant came out of Grimmjow's mouth. "On jite rashi itara jiba ratanō sowaka." and this time the words formed into a chain weaved of the deepest darkness itself, also winding round the pillar of light and it began pulsing weakly.

"On haya baishiraman taya sowaka." the Oni voiced the second verse, his hands automatically moving in the appropriate manner and another black chain followed them, taking its proper place.

Now it was Arisawa's turn and the hollow chanted in a hoarse voice. "On aga naya in maya sowaka." moving her fingers so quickly the gestures seemed to blend into one. "On hirota ki shanoga jiba tai sowaka." and a pair of crimson chains coiled out of her white mask, following the others' example.

Now the trapped distortion began to violently shake the earth, random surges of reiryaku shooting out like lightning, though hitting only the splitting ground. Drops of sweat sprinkled the Guardians' skin, but they did not abate.

The last two verses blended together into incomprehensible muttering through the renewed rage of thunder above their heads as the three of them proceeded as one and when the three sets of conjured chains tightened around the column of light, reducing it to at least half of its original width, their hands separated again, only tips of their fingers touching slightly to form a circle in front of their chests that charged with energy as they cried out: "Bakudou # 101: Amatsu Tsuihou!"

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**Now this little cliffhanger... need to think very carefully what happens next and I think this was the perfect thing to lure you into anticipation, yes?**

**Well even if it wasn't, I'll make sure to make it up to you all :) In case you're wondering, the Ritual of Banishment comes from Kuji-in - Nine Hand Seals asociated with nine syllables of Kuji, for our purposes it serves a little as exorcism of a sort, look it up on wikipedia if you wish :) Or if you've seen Tactics anime, I based it on that :)**

**That bakudou spell is of my own making... "Amatsu" means heavenly and "Tsuihou" means banishment... it sounded cool :)**

**Please review as always, every opinion is welcome :) and see you next time :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Konnichiwa, minna-sama!**

**It's been quite a while and for that I apologize! *bows* But here comes the 8th chapter of Devil's Snare, which should've been the last... though it somehow didn't work out! :) Look forward to at least one more! :)**

**Again, my sincere thanks goes to Evil-Peach, who proofread this for me!**

**Enjoy and please, leave reviews! Feedback is important! Without it, this would've never seen the light of day! :)**

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The world exploded in a flash of blinding light. The bright column, bound with three sets of chains, reaching high into grey, ominous skies seemed to have been sucked right into the swirling whirlpool of storm clouds as if it were a giant mouth, and barely a heartbeat later all the energy was released back at once, hitting the ground with such a force, even the trees and what remains of the once bustling Rukongai district of Inuzuri were swept away, torn from the parched ground.

Cloud of dust, earth and rubble rose into the air, obscuring the vision and filling lungs to the point, where breathing became almost impossible. They all felt themselves being hoisted up and scattered unceremoniously all around the place, with no way of knowing where was up and where was down. The air around them charged with spiritual pressure of such density, it resembled an ocean crushing down on their bodies as they sank into its depth, having no control over the current carrying them back and forth, preventing them from making it back to the surface.

It disappeared as quickly as it had come and gravitation -once again taking control over the chaos- claimed them and they fell hard onto the ground with a sickening crunch of bones breaking. The kidou barrier above their heads dispersed, re-forming into many small pockets, trapping the Shinigami and humans alike within bright golden cages pulsing with energy.

Only one of them remained standing.

Or more like suspended in midair, great wings spread wide, obscuring the golden orb of sun, now once more shining brightly within the perfect, pale-blue sky, when the storm clouds disappeared. Pitch-black feathers seemed to consume its light, swathing their owner in shimmering garments weaved of complete, impenetrable darkness.

Folding his wings, his feet slowly touched the ground as if he weighed nothing; long hair -like liquid obsidian streaked with rubies, where the cones of gold managed to get through- flowing round his slender waist, caressed by a non-existent breeze.

"Free at last!" raising his arms, Amatsu Mikaboshi took a lungful of fresh air, though soaked with blood and the smell of burnt flesh. "It's been far too long."

Fathomless, onyx eyes -rimmed by the slightest, deep shade of crimson- ran up and down his new form, scrutinizing every inch of it and finding it most satisfactory. After all, he wouldn't expect anything less of Abarai Renji's well-trained body.

"Not long enough." the low growl of pain and rage made him turn around lazily; sly smile on his face -still very much resembling Renji's, in spite of the lack of tribal tattoos- widened as his gaze fell upon the two remaining guardians, panting heavily only few feet from him, barely able to stand.

He laughed at the sight and the soft sound carried death in its wake. "Resilient as always, I shouldn't be surprised." though clearly walking towards them, he seemed to be floating inches above the ground, darkness swirling around his ankles with each step.

Grimmjow gritted his teeth. "Stay where you are!" he spoke again, fighting hard against his weakness.

"Or what?" Mikaboshi's voice folded like velvet as he humored them, his smile now gentle, yet mocking. "You'll seal me again?" his eyes darted between the Oni, occupying the teal-haired espada's body and Arisawa Tatsuki's hollow guardian. "You're hardly in any position to threaten me. Look at you both; it's a miracle you're still standing."

"Don't... underestimate us." the human high-school girl breathed out, single visible inked eye narrowed, burning with frustration under the crumbling white mask.

The Old God let out an exasperated sigh and shook his head. "I do not wish to fight you, however if you insist, I shall indulge you."

And even as he said that, Inuzuri suddenly melted into complete void and he found himself surrounded by human-shaped shadows, dancing, holding hands. Black eyebrows raised as he overlooked the little forms, reminding him of children, and sure enough, children's voices soon filled his ears.

"_Kagome, Kagome, kago no naka no tori wa, itsu itsu deyaru_?" they chanted and he suddenly felt just a little bit dizzy and disoriented.

He recognized this enthralling song. It was the Oni's strongest special ability, meant to blunt his opponent's senses and enable him to strike from stealth, while they focus on the dancing apparitions.

But it won't work on him.

"_Yoake no ban ni, tsuru to kame ga subetta. Ushiro no shoumen dare_?" the voices ceased the very moment the children-like shadows swooped down upon him.

Metal clanged against metal as Grimmjow appeared among them, out of nowhere, bringing Pantera down to connect with the tip of Tengu's staff, materializing in Mikaboshi's hands. It swished through the air as if it was nothing but an illusion, and that was all it took to wriggle the sword out of the already exhausted Sexta's hand, throwing it over their heads, its tip sinking deep into the ground some ten feet away.

"You'll have to do better than this." Mikaboshi hissed with grim satisfaction, gripping the Oni by the neck and hoisting him up with inhuman strength, tossing him away to where the rest of them lay motionless, caged by the dispersed remainders of the kidou barrier.

He realized he had been fooled the moment the earth trembled beneath his feet, poisonous vines sprouted from the ground, wrapping around his body and binding his limbs. He uttered a curse under his breath, berating himself for being stupid, and that was when he heard a low hiss followed by quick, slithering movement, and turned around just in time to see Arisawa Tatsuki jumping high into the air at such speed, he could only watch her descend upon him, fangs, adorning her hollow mask bared and glittering with deadly poison.

Perhaps he overestimated his own abilities; after all he had just awakened, it will take time for his powers to fully return. With this in mind, Mikaboshi wriggled one great black wing free, wrapping it around himself as if it were a shield to protect him from the worst of the attack...

... and then there was a slash, followed by a yelp of surprise and pain and Arisawa rolled through the air, thrown off balance, missing him by inches and skid to a halt right next to Grimmjow's unmoving form.

Amatsu Mikaboshi's onyx eyes narrowed as he watched -now free again- a pool of blood blossoming on the parched ground beneath her fallen body. He could feel familiar reiatsu oozing from the wound in her abdomen and needn't have bothered turning about to recognize its owner.

"You do enjoy theatrical appearances, do you," he scrutinized the tall, slender man, casually standing by a cluster of what might have once been trees; black eyes met chocolate ones sparkling with interest, reflected in the mildly amused mirth adorning his handsome face. "Aizen Sousuke?"

The former 5th Division Captain did not respond immediately, single loose strand of otherwise perfectly groomed brown hair brushed against his cheek as he walked almost lazily forward, emerald hilt of his faithful Kyouka Suigetsu peeking out through the folds of his snow-shite haori with each step. Behind his back, two other men stood, each carrying a limp body - Ulquiorra with Orihime in his arms and Ichimaru Gin, unloading unconscious heap of what could only be Kurotsuchi Mayuri.

Aizen watched his body hit the ground with a thud and for a brief moment, his gaze lingered on his silver-haired subordinate, whose face-splitting grin was firmly in place, eyes seemingly shut tight. "On the contrary, I've been watching the situation for quite some time." his velvety voice reverberated through the silent battlefield, as sinister as always, when he turned back to face Mikaboshi once more, not giving anything away. "It's been most illuminating."

The atmosphere between them seemed to thicken considerably and Aizen's smile hadn't vanished even though the man himself came to a halt, keeping reasonable distance from the black-winged god.

"Whatever might have happened, to the 12th Division Captain, I wonder?" chocolate eyes pierced their onyx counterparts without even a hint of any emotion, let alone the fear Mikaboshi's been used to.

And it made him laugh. "That circus freak dabbled in what he shouldn't have. So I made him run a few errands for me." Amatsu gestured towards the barrier pockets. "He proved quite useful."

"Indeed." the former Captain inclined his head as if considering something. "Gin." he said simply without sparing a look for his lieutenant.

Ichimaru, however, understood perfectly, outstretching his hand very slowly, thin, long forefinger pinching the air to his left. Gaping, black mouth opened where he touched - the Garganta, way back to Hueco Mundo. He stepped aside, making a way for Aizen, who turned around and walked towards it without a word.

"So you've come to say hello and now you're leaving again?" Mikaboshi's smile reflected in the tone of his voice, though he were most serious, conscious it could be fatal mistake, perhaps even for him, to underestimate this dangerous man.

Aizen stopped just before stepping through the Garganta, turning his head. "Of course not, you are coming as well." he said with unbelievable self-confidence. "However, it would be most unwise to use force to make you do so. I simply hope, there will be no need to resort to such measures."

Mikaboshi folded his hands on his chest, not moving from his spot. "And why would I want to follow you? You have nothing to offer me in return."

"On the contrary." the former 5th Division Captain now faced the Old God fully, his features knowing and composed. "I believe I can offer you much. Your brother on a silver plate, among other things."

The winged demon frowned, all amusement now gone.

"No one stands on the top of the world, as you may well know. Not you, not me, not even _him_." fingers danced on the hilt of Kyouka Suigetsu. "But the unbearable vacancy of the throne in the sky is over. From now on, I will be sitting on it." brown eyes gleamed with the first hint of emotion yet - ambition. "However, to achieve that, I will need your services. And for you to have your revenge, you will need mine. It is as simple as that."

Mikaboshi's frown deepened still. How much did this Shinigami know? How much _could_ he know?

"Please do not look so surprised. After all, it were due to my intervention the Guardians failed their duty seventy years ago. You owe me your freedom and I am offering you much more still. Only a fool would turn it down." Aizen motioned to his two subordinates and they followed his through, Inoue safely held by Ulquiorra, Kurotsuchi discarded in the dust to be left behind.

Amatsu Mikaboshi considered it carefully. He remembered what happened during the last Ritual of Banishment and though they were small, the mistakes caused his prison to weaken that much more quickly, enabling him to take over one of the current guardians, disguising himself as a Tengu to see if this world would truly be worthy of his presence, and found himself intrigued by the lives and fates of the people and Shinigami he came to know through their interactions, as well as Renji's feelings and memories. Countless millennia of solitude within the depths of hell blunted his ability to feel anything, and now, that he once again tasted what it was like, hatred for those who had betrayed him and sealed him away burned within his heart as brightly as the flames of love Renji held for the people around him. And it helped Mikaboshi think, reflect on the past and carefully plan the course of his actions.

"Wait." his voice resonated through the quiet, and it made the three men stop in their tracks.

Aizen didn't even bother to hide the self-satisfied mirth that spread over his face at that moment; his intuition never failed.

Mikaboshi returned the smile. "You are most interesting Shinigami, Aizen Sousuke." he walked round the cages, looking for one in particular. "I am no spirit you can bend to your will, however, bear that in mind." he found the motionless body of Kuchiki Byakuya and crouched beside the edge of the barrier that separated them.

This was the person Abarai Renji held most dear and despite all his powers, Mikaboshi realized he were just a spirit like any other, swayed and stirred by the desires of his host. He reached to one of his wings, yanking a single feather out, placing it into Byakuya's hand. He could feel Renji struggling against his domination, though his endeavors had ceased the moment he laid eyes on the raven-haired noble. Mikaboshi sent a thought to the red-head, apologizing and got up again, turning towards where his new allies were patiently waiting for him.

If Aizen wondered what that was all about, he's neither shown it, nor attempted to ask questions.

"It would be a disappointment, if you were." he said only.

Chuckle left Amatsu Mikaboshi's curled lips and he left all behind, following the former 5th Division captain and his lackeys into the gaping depths of Garganta, which closed behind them. His last look, however, fell on Byakuya clutching one of his black feathers in pale, graceful hand. He hoped the Kuchiki will keep it when he comes round.

It will be important.

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**Kagome Kagome **- Japanese children's game; one child is chosen as the Oni and sits blindfolded, the other children join hands and walk around the Oni, whila chanting the song of the game. When the song stops, the Oni speaks aloud the name of the person behind them, and if they are correct, the person will exchange places with the Oni.

**Translation** - words of Kagome Kagome varies, but I used the version from Tactics, which means:

_'Kagome Kagome crouch little bird inside your cage, when oh when will he get out?_

_Up before the light of dawn. _

_Crane and turtle slipped and fell, who is behind you can you tell?'_


	9. Chapter 9

**Rejoice, I finally managed to kick myself into finishing another chapter! Banzaaaai! **

**Anyway, a hint of trouble, some explanation... and a little something to remind you why this fic is M-rated, which means some yaoi goodness! :) Excuse possible OOCsness, it's getting a bit difficult to keep them all in character while I'm stressed out... *bows***

**Thanks goes to Evil-Peach for proof-reading, as usual =3**

**Enjoy!**

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Steam clouded the vision, quiet splashing soothed all five senses just like the feel of hot water against soft, smooth skin brought peace and a sense of tranquility into tired, troubled mind.

Kuchiki Byakuya moved to feel the warm stone against his back, raising his arms to rest over the edge of the Kuchiki manor outdoor bath. Taking a lung full of late autumn evening -surprisingly not chilly at all- the noble tilted his head, raven tresses barely touching the steaming water surface. Eyes traced garlands of stars blinking down on him from the slowly darkening sky, the most bright ones reflected in those fathomless, obsidian depths before they closed.

With a soft sigh, slowly, the 6th Division captain drifted away into the world of thought. It's been over a week since the disaster at Inuzuri, and sure enough, things were getting worse by the minute. The news of what had transpired during the Ritual of Banishment spread like wildfire and the Gotei 13 now had well-nigh revolt on their hands. Panic gripped Soul Society whole and the lowest Rukongain Districts were the first to rebel against the Shinigami reign. Riots of this magnitude have never happened in all of history of Soul Society... though, truth be told, in the last few months, there has been several such incidents, Kurosaki Ichigo being one of them. What was the world coming to, Byakuya asked himself.

All of his life he was taught to trust in the justice of Seireitei, devote himself and his skills to Gotei 13 and its leaders, but the Central 46 failed miserably in their duties once already -which lead to their annihilation by Aizen Sousuke- and though now the Soul Society's main legislative body has been restored, faith in the justice of their ways was all but lost. With their inability to decide what to do with the Espada Ichimaru had left behind, locked up in the 2nd Division detention cell, four of the 13 captains absent -Kurotsuchi being the fourth, since he was still in no shape to even stand up on his own- the Winter War knocking at the door, Mikaboshi on the loose and Renji now gone too, morale in the Gotei 13 reached far below the freezing point.

"Renji..." Byakuya's lips moved, though the name was barely audible and he felt his insides clench with unexplainable fear... and longing.

"Taichou." came just as quiet answer followed by obsidian eyes widening as they fell into their warm, chocolate counterparts with the slightest hint of crimson.

In less that what it takes for pupils to dilate in shock, lips connected with lips in a wordless request for permition and without being fully aware of what was happening, Byakuya had given it, delving into the kiss, while pale, slender arms wrapped around tattooed neck and back as if he were afraid the man would dissapear if he let go. And perhaps that was exactly the case, because this couldn't be happening no matter how much the noble would try to convince himself otherwise.

However his already relaxed mind refused to listen to the insistent nudging of reason and the raven-haired captain found himself enthralled, utterly unable to look away from those bewitching, dark eyes, long crimson hair wet and sticking to tattooed forehead and back, water trailing down tanned skin, copying the lean lines of muscle shifting underneath those wild, black markings Byakuya himself now relized he were following along his vice-captain's spine to the small of his back.

For a single heartbeat, he thought just how far Renji's tattos stretched and how much he'D like to see all of the red-head's body in all of its naked beauty, however his mind went black, senses stopped processing all external stimuli, except the burning sensation of broad, strong body pressed against his own; wicked, wet mouth trailing along the nape of his neck and nimble fingers rubbing over and around a pair of nipples, darkened against pale, delicate skin.

Moan of yearning and anticipation could not be stopped, jolts of sweet electricity ran through Byakuya's shivering body at the feeling of sword-calloused fingertips sliding down his chest and abdomen, reaching the edge of the bathwater, that hasn't stopped their progress south still along sensitive skin of the pelvis and between long, slender legs parting reflexively for the touch.

The Kuchiki heir found himself unable to think, to resist, to gather up what little still remained of his noble upbringing and surprisingly enough, he realized he couldn't even care at all. He didn't know why, but every place Renji touched burned, and the only think Byakuya wished for right now was to let the lieutenant scorch every single cell in his body with heat of the sun itself, projected into every caress, kiss and slide of tongue.

Deftly, the noble reached down between their bodies, finding the tempting arousal between the red-heads thighs, long, thin fingers wrapping around it, feeling the veins pulsing beneath stretched, sensitive skin and stroking the harneded flesh with uncharacteristic greed, unbecoming of a Kuchiki. Realizing the unashamed wanton and need of his actions, however, did nothing to kick the noble's rational reasoning back online, for which he felt most grateful the moment a strong hand gripped his own neglected need, pumping harshly, thumb sweeping the white moisture leaking from the tip.

Sliding lower underneath the warm water surface washing over their heated bodies, their lips met once more, tongues intertwining without the need to fight for dominance, simply enjoying the taste of the other's mouth. Quickening breaths mingled together with soft groans of pleasure reaching its peak, creating a symphony for which Byakuya provided lyrics and Renji the music. With every slide of their hands, murmures of praise and the other's name left kiss-swolen lips, and all it took was few more heartbeats for their bodies to stiffen, last audible sound of crossing the threshold echoing through the heavy air, the universe exploding behind closed eyelids.

It was gone as quickly as it had come, embarassment tinting Byakuya's sallow cheeks with ruby when he realized he was alone, hand loosening around his own, now pliant arousal. His chest heaving, he could still feel every single touch of Renji's fingers, lips and tongue, yet there was no one else in the bath and as this revelation settled in his slowly clearing mind, he wished to just dissapear into the bowls of the earth, never to be seen or heard from again.

However, the 27th head of the Kuchiki clan could indulge himself in no such luxury. He realized that with crushing inevitability the moment he stepped over the threashold of his personal quarters and obsidian eyes fell on a single, black feather resting over a plain sheet of paper on the table, right next to a bottle of ink and a calligraphy brush. Midnight-blue kinagashi ristles softly around Byakuya's ankles as he moved, diverting his eyes. He couldn't say why he kept the feather, even if his life depended on it. It was just when he woke up, trapped within a kidou barrier together with the others those long days ago, to discover Ichimaru, Renji and one of Aizen's Espada was gone, leaving only Grimmjow behind, unconscious, and the first think he could feel was a tickling of this long, black feather clutched in his hand, the noble could not bring himself to just leave it. Like something was telling him it would be important.

Shaking his head, the raven-haired captain tried hard to get the thought of never seeing Renji again out of his mind, focusing on his duties to the Gotei 13, if not to the Central 46, because the current situation in Rukongai could not be taken lightly and his obsidian gaze gleamed with determination, though facial expression remained the usual mask of indifference.

They still had two of the three keys to Mikaboshi's imprisonment, the guardians still haven't left their hosts and they will end this madness as soon as possible. They have to, or the worlds will fall apart.

And Renji will come back once this is done, Byakuya was sure of it. He wanted to be sure of it. However, fear found its way into his heart, whether he wanted or not and he found himself familiar with the sensation, for he had felt it once before - the frustrating helplessness of being unable to keep the word he had given to his dying wife, to protect her sister whom he came to love as if she truly was his own.

The sound of warning bells pierced his dark thoughts like a knife, obsidian eyes widening in shock and surprise, raven head raised to listen intently.

"Emergency alert! Emergency alert!" voice echoed through the whole of Seireitei, loud, clear and ominous. "Intruders in Seireitei! All Divisions please take defense positions! Repeat..."

By the time the message was repeated, Byakuya's kinagashi laid in a puddle by his bed, Senbonzakura gone along with captain's haori and shihakusho stashed neatly in the corner just seconds before.

It has begun.

o*O*o

The sky above was inky-black, penetrated by single brilliantly shining sickle of ivory moon standing ageless, eternal and unchanging guardian of the unnaturally silent, still dunes of bleak, white sand. Misshaped forms of what could possibly be called trees protruded from the ground, most of all resembling limbs of creatures long since dead, reaching up from beneath their desert tombs in a wordless plea for forgiveness and release. Only occasionally something moved, slithering across the endless, white sea of Hueco Mundo to disappear moments later, once again escaping the notice of predators prowling the desolate landscapes.

_Peaceful_, crossed through the mind of a solitary shadow standing at the top of a great fortress, rising proudly to the blank, pitch-black heavens.

Great, black wings fluttered in the air, bereft of even the slightest breeze; arms wrapped around muscular, yet slender body clad in garments almost blending with the eternal night sky behind his back, though standing painfully out against the whiteness of the rooftops of Las Noches beneath his feet.

**/Creepy!/** disembodied voice echoed in response. **/This place's fuckin' freakin' me out./**

Smile adorned Amatsu Mikaboshi's lips, he closed his eyes, reaching for the presence residing in the far corners of his mind, the touch soothing, yet teasing.

_Since when have you become a coward, Renji?_

The response was every bit as harsh as he had expected.

**/Who's a fuckin' coward? If something's creepy, it's creepy, can't do nothin' about it!/ **Abarai Renji's voice spat back, the Shinigami -whose body Mikaboshi now occupied- still preserved intact, much to his surprise.

_Sumanai, Renji. Please bear with it for a while longer._

Those words gave Renji a pause. He didn't know much about Amatsu Mikaboshi, only what the legends lead him and everyone else to believe. But the more time he spent with the Old God, the more he realized everything they were told until now could very well be a lie. Because Mikaboshi had no reason to keep his consciousness alive. In fact, there was nothing to be gained from doing so as far as Renji could tell, more like it would have been easier to just erase him completely. It boggled the red-head's mind, giving him a headache. He was never one for thinking, but since there was not nothing else to keep him occupied the last few days, that was exactly what he's been doing, whether he liked it or not.

**/Oi, Mikaboshi,/ **Renji decided to speak after a moment of silence that followed. **/What're you planning? What's that with the Spirit King Aizen was jabberin' about?/**

_My, my, Renji, don't tell me you do not know your own history._

Renji ruffled up. **/Stop bein' so fuckin' evasive! It's pissin' me off./**he barked. **/For one there's no mention of you two bein' brothers, so there's obviously somethin' wrong. Since you already usurped my body, just spit it out already, I'm not gonna tell./**

Mikaboshi laughed, the sound having nothing to do with the devil everyone believed him to be.

_It is true, history is only as accurate as the author of the book._

And with that a set of images flashed through his mind for Renji to see and comprehend. The creation of the worlds; Spirit King and Mikaboshi together left to rule and guard for what their father had split his own body to conjure from nothing.

_It was a promise we made to our father, that we would watch over the worlds he had created together, taking our turns. I became the ruler of the night and all of its creatures, while the day was my brother's domain._

Mikaboshi found it hard to remember those days, but Renji listened intently, for once actually curious about something else besides Byakuya and fighting. He watched the sequences of images and feelings the Old God shared with him and slowly began to put the pieces of the story together.

For a while the arrangement worked. Each of the two brothers had their respective territories, they could only meet at dawn and dusk and though it's been somehow lonely existence, they knew they had to accept their fate. To ease the loneliness, they each created themselves companions, Renji recognized some of the creatures Mikaboshi had shown him - lesser gods that ruled over elements like fire, water, earth and air; guardians of mountains and as humans began to populate the Material world, more were born to protect the naïve race, to show them the way in the dark.

Mikaboshi's creations were what Renji knew now as demons; bat-like wings spread wide as they sailed through the night, holding a protective hand over human hunters and those lost in woods or at the see - Sirens, young women with enchanting voices leading sailors away from certain death; Succubi and Incubi alike, too perfect images of heavenly beauty to ease stress of human body in the dead of night, in their dreams; Oni, barbaric creatures with makeshift wooden clubs to chase anything that could harm the humans away from he villages... there were many more Renji did not care to guess, because his mind had wandered off elsewhere. There was something wrong with these images. Demons weren't supposed to help humans or anyone else for that matter.

**/Wait a sec.../** he tried to make some sense of it all. **/You're sayin' that you and your demons are actually the good guys?/ **the red-head found it hard to believe. The whole history couldn't be wrong... could it? **/What about hollows then?/**

Mikaboshi did not answer, only another set of images assaulted Renji's mind. He saw as time went by, that the people came to fear the creatures Mikaboshi created to protect them, while they began to worship his brother's creations more each day. Rumors started spreading, that whenever sailors heard a siren's song, their ship would hit the reefs leaving very few survivors. People began to believe succubi fed on them while they dreamt and those the demons visited could never be awakened again. And the souls of those, who were supposed to die in these incidents roamed the world, restless and unable to pass on and sooner or later the grief, guilt, love, hatred, sorrow - all the emotions that held them chained to their former lives drove them mad and something new was created. Creatures of darkness that fed on the souls of those they once called their kin. Hollows.

Mikaboshi watched each night as the world he wished to protect staggered at the very precipice of destruction. Not only the people, but the elements and all the creatures including their guardians, together with the very land were becoming uncontrollable and he felt ashamed of how long it had taken him to confront his brother at dawn one day, when they could meet again. What he found, however, was not what he was looking for. Just like those his brother had created in his image for humans to worship, he too was hiding behind his angelic visage, the true nature Mikaboshi has never seen before. He prepared a trap for the God of Night, using hollows as well as his own creations to seal his brother away for good and usurp the ultimate power for himself, retreating to another dimension the humans slowly came to so arrogantly call Heaven.

There the images ceased and Renji felt the whole of his mind throbbing painfully, attempting to take in all the information. He could sense the frustration and anger emanating from the contact Mikaboshi had kept with him still, but there was something the red-head couldn't quite put his finger on. Like the there was something missing, something important.

_Most humans came to call those things angels as I recall. Funny thing, really, because such belief could not be further from truth!_

The voice resonating through their joined thoughts dripped scorn.

_Though that's the thing about my brother and his beloved children, isn't it? They _inspire_ trust with their light-given powers, don't they? Who in their right mind would think a creature of darkness only strived to protect them?_

The outburst of reiatsu that surged through Mikaboshi at those words made Renji's conscience recoil. The air around them crackled with spiritual energy, pavement beneath their feet cracked and crumbled.

"Phew, that's dangerous ya know." prolonged, lazy voice made Mikaboshi turn around.

He was so immersed in his hatred, neither he nor Renji registered Ichimaru Gin leaning against a huge, white slope some distance away. He looked like he's been there for quite a while, though to him it probably looked like Mikaboshi stood there all alone in silent contemplation. From one point of view, though, that was precisely what he was doing.

"Aizen-taichou'll skin lil' ol' me alive if somethin' happens." his grin as face-splitting as ever, the silver-haired shinigami bounced off the wall, hands thrust in his long sleeves. "Since yer accommodation's my responsibility..."

"What do you want?" Mikaboshi snapped, ignoring it; he didn't really feel like dealing with a snake right now. Or anyone else for that matter.

Ichimaru raised his hands in defense, though his smile had not faded in the slightest. "Don't go killin' the messenger." he said. "I'm 'ere ta tell ya Aizen-taichou's waitin' downstairs."

Ignoring the image of himself wagging his tail like a dog on a leash, Mikaboshi followed the former 3rd Division captain through Las Noches for what felt like eternity without meeting a soul, Renji rumbling at the back of his mind about how ridiculously huge the place is, which kind of cheered the Old God up a bit, and when finally Ichimaru floated away with a wave, he found himself in front of a great, massive door.

Entirely on its own, it opened silently to admit him, closing again immediately after he crossed the threshold, finding himself in a round room the size of a small football field. Like everything in this place, the walls surrounding him were bleak white, small set of stairs at the opposite end leading to a spacious balcony with view over the black sky and infinite dunes of Hueco Mundo. And there, standing by an ornated white railing was Aizen Sousuke, seemingly deep in thought.

"I trust you have made yourself comfortable." he spoke suddenly with deep, velvety voice that folded through the silence like a spider's web around its prey.

He did not turn around until Mikaboshi invited himself to step onto the balcony. Small mirth etched into handsome face, chocolate eyes heavy-lidded and gleaming with cold expediency as he looked his guest over, his mind automatically searching and judging whom he considered a potential threat. Just like everyone else. That was why he never encouraged those who followed him to trust him; in fact he made a point never to forget to emphasize not to place their trust in anyone, not even himself. Trust and friendship were but simple illusions for fools who could not comprehend the concept of betrayal; the fragility of people's loyalties. He were no such fool and neither was the one standing in front of him.

"In a manner of speaking." Mikaboshi answered calmly. "Hueco Mundo changed quite a bit since last I have been here. Your handiwork, I presume?"

"Some of it, yes." Aizen admitted, the smile on his face could almost be called kind. "However small talk is not what I have called you here for. I assume, you are familiar with the current situation?"

Mikaboshi nodded. He had enough time to find out everything about the coming Winter War, even if it wasn't for Renji being the main source of information, since the Shinigami's been at the very heart of Kurosaki Ichigo's raid on Soul Society.

"Good, then let's get to the point, shall we?" the former captain moved to the middle of the balcony, hovering his hand above seemingly plain, white floor.

A circular opening appeared at his feet and a column rose up, opening up into a miniature spiral staircase to reveal what was hidden inside - a little sphere glowing brightly with blue and purple energy swirling within.

"The Hogyoku." he said quite unnecessarily, for Mikaboshi was already familiar with Urahara Kisuke's invention, at least as far as Renji's knowledge went, though indeed it wasn't much. "I trust you are also familiar with the concept of its powers and the fact that Gotei 13th continued existence depends on its waking state."

Mikaboshi watched Aizen reach out, fingers enclosing around the little innocent looking marble. Turning to face him, the expression in those chocolate eyes changed from mild amusement to fierce determination.

"Unfortunately after it fully awakens, it will be impossible even for me to fully control it unless I accept it into my own body, combining our powers and becoming one with the Hogyoku." Aizen's obsession with reaching such level could not be misread. "Not only it would give me the power to create the King's Key, but not even the Soutaichou himself could stop me and it is certain he will try."

"The fact that you'll be practically immortal if you do that has nothing to do with it." Mikaboshi let out, frowning at the prospect of what exactly it was Aizen wanted from him.

Again an amused smile curled the former 5th Division captain's thin lips and he placed the Hogyoku back without answering immediately, until it disappeared beneath their feet once more.

"Let's just say it is a welcome side-effect." he said, brown eyes bearing into obsidian ones of his guest. "One I am inclined to live with in exchange for the chance we both know will come only once in a lifetime. Right now, the chance is at arm's reach and for both of us to grab it before it slips through our fingers, we need to work together." he sighed softly, inclining his head. "I ask you only for a fraction of your powers to enable me to merge with the Hogyoku. Once this is done, you are free to pursue your vengeance against your brother, just like we agreed. What say you, Amatsu Mikaboshi?"

What might have been ages passed while the two of them were simply standing there, looking at each other, considering all possible outcomes of this conversation. Until slowly, Mikaboshi's frown depened and his head moved in a gesture of consent.

* * *

**If there's something that doesn't make sense, let me know, it's hard to keep track of precisely what was going on in the previous chapters without reading them all over again each time before publishing a new one... unfortunatela as much as I'd like to do that, there's just not enough time...**

**Thank you and reviews are always welcome!**


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